The Unexpected (First Version)
by Dandelions On Fire
Summary: When Severus Snape shows up at 12 Grimmauld Place with a woman about his age and a teenage girl who has his eyes, that's when you know things are not going to be what you were expecting. [Rewritten and revised version is being posted and can be found on my profile]
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer****: Only saying it once. I obviously don't own Harry Potter, I mean it's called _fan_fiction for a reason.**

**I only own what you don't recognize.**

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><p>The slow tapping of fingers against wood could be heard in the living room of Twelve Grimmauld Place. The sound that was starting to become extremely stressful for Molly Weasley, who was trying to clean some of the furniture that was covered in dust.<p>

Behind her back was her younger son, looking at her movements attentively.

"You still haven't answered our question, mum." He said with narrowed eyes, looking at his mother suspiciously. Since last week, a few members of the Order of The Phoenix, his parents included, had been acting a little bit too weird for his liking. They were ignoring their questions more than usual, as if there was something bigger to hide this time.

"What?" Molly swallowed. "Sorry honey, I have to check the food. We can talk later." She walked to the kitchen as fast as she could, with Ron following closely behind.

"No mum, not later, now. What's going on? You've been avoiding answering our questions more than usual and we're not even asking about the _big order business_! We just want to know if something worse than the ordinary has happened! Just answer that!" He said, exasperated.

"Except _it is_ big order business..." Molly whispered to herself while looking at the food. She let out a tired sigh and turned to look at him. "Ronald..." That catched his attention and he looked at her. Really looked at her. She appeared to be worried and worn out. _This is bad, _he thought. "Believe me when I say that_ we can't tell you_. And I mean it. This is very important and you will know what's about in a few hours at most, but right now, we really can't tell you _anything_ about it."

"Why?!" He asked, desperate. Molly closed her eyes for a second before looking at him in the eyes.

"Because I..." She paused and took a shaky breath. "Because _we_ made an Unbreakable Vow." He didn't know what kind of answer he was expecting to get out of her but that one was definitely not it. He couldn't speak, he could just look at her with his mouth slightly open. When he was about to bombard her with questions, she spoke. "Now go, I have to finish this." He didn't move. "Ronald Weasley, _get out of here_. That is an order."

He blinked a few times, closed his mouth and left the room.

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><p>"An Unbreakable Bow? Merlin..." George said while running a hand through his hair. "This is huge."<p>

"What do you think they vowed? Maybe they are protecting someone..." Hermione added while biting her lip deep in thought. "I mean... it makes sense. They can't say anything because they would die."

"Don't be so bloody cold about it. We're talking about my parents and possibly brothers dying here!" Ron cried as Hermione rolled her eyes.

"They are not going to die, Ron. They are not stupid and one does not make an Unbreakable Vow knowing they could break it easily." Ginny said, successfully calming her brother. Ron just sighed and rested his head on the mattress behind him.

"Whatever, we are going to know today anyway. That's what mum said, isn't it?" Fred asked entering the room after trying to listen if any of the adults said anything about the subject without succeeding. Ron nodded.

"Well... everyone is already here. This has to be it... right?"

"Should we go-" Hermione's question was cut short by Molly calling for them to go downstairs.

They looked at each other in silence and made their way down slowly. This time they were actually nervous, because something was telling them that what was about to happen was something they could not expect.

Sirius, Molly, Arthur, Remus, Tonks, and Dumbledore were the only people in the room. The latter was a surprise to them, and his presence only helped to make them feel even more nervous.

"Uh... well... what we are about to..." Molly stammered but Albus stopped her, receiving a grateful and relieved smile from her.

"It's okay Molly, let me explain. Would you please take a seat?" He asked slowly, as if trying to soothe their nerves. It wasn't too helpful because the adults looked rather worried, and that was definitely _not_ a good sign. Albus sat on a chair so he could face them all directly.

"What we are about to confide you, we do it because more than once you have shown that you can be trusted. However, on this particular matter, it's not only about trust, it's also about the danger in which we could put very important people, if the situation is not assessed with the upmost care. What I'm saying is that you will be told an important secret, and if you are willing to keep it, you will have to make an Unbreakable Vow. If you are not willing, your memory of the moment will have to be erased. Are you okay with this?"

The kids looked at each other and nodded. The sound of the door opening made them turn their heads at the same time. Three people entered the room. Two were unknown to them, but the third one made them really wonder _what the hell_ was really going on.

Severus Snape stood in the room with two women, one that looked at least five or six years younger than him, and one that had to be at least seventeen.

"You are all aware of who Professor Snape is, I'm sure." Albus said with a smile on his eyes. They looked at Severus with frowns on their faces, and it was almost possible to see him resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

"I'm Juliana." said the older woman with a very slight accent none of them coud recognize. "And this is Cassandra."

"Cassie. Just Cassie. I like it better." The younger girl said as she waved at them with a small smile. Five pair of eyes turned to look at her, their attention focused completely on her for the first time.

In about five seconds their minds recognized that this girl had jet black hair that was way _too familiar,_ and definitely didn't match with the color the woman standing next to her, who was obviously her mother. This girl, _Cassie_, did have her nose, mouth and her body shape, but not her hair and... _her eyes_. They all knew _those_ eyes. How could they not? Hell, every student in Hogwarts knew those eyes and probably more than a half were terrified of them.

Those were, without a doubt, Severus Snape's eyes.

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><p><strong>This is were the author notes go, right? Um, okay. So I decided to make this story because it's something I wanted to happen and obviously no one was going to make it... but I'm really new at this writing thing and english isn't even my native language (it's spanish). So if any human being reads this and thinks "Omg this is wrong" and wishes to correct me YOU ARE DEFINITELY WELCOME. DO IT.<strong>

**Also, this story is not intended to be super deep or long, I actually want it to be short and pretty shallow just to calm my need to see this happening. It's obviously AU, and the main focus is the relationship between Cassie and Fred, and her mother Juliana with Severus. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Um so here's Chapter two, so everyone out there who's reading the story can see how the format of the story is going to be. Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorite!**

**There is a line bolded. That means that part is spoken on portuguese.**

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><p>Severus Snape was not a patient man. But as you probably know, every rule has an exception, and his exceptions were his wife and daughter.<p>

...

Juliana met him on his last year at Hogwarts. She was an exchange student from Brazil who, as soon as she got there, began to get treated like everyone's new favourite toy. That was something he found utterly stupid and annoying.

Unbeknownst to him, so did she.

She got sorted into Hufflepuff, which became the main reason he decided to completely ignore her. She, on the other side, could not bring herself to not think about him. Once she laid her eyes on him, every other boy in the school became irrelevant.

They never shared classes and for that he was grateful. It was not entirely because of _her_ specifically, but because he despised Hufflepuffs. They were weak, dumb, and absolutely disposable. He never saw the point to that house apart from the fact that it reunited all the garbage other houses didn't want. For him, being sorted into Hufflepuff was worse that being sorted into Gryffindor, it meant you just weren't good enough. Added to that was the fact that he could not walk through a hallway without listening someone talking about her, which made him be aware of her existence when he wasn't interested on it.

Of course it didn't take long to Juliana to realize this. The people in the Slytherin table were always making fun of them and treating them as if they were dirt. She was angry, yes, but in no little time she learned to ignore them like all her housemates did.

It definitely sounded cliché, but they were just _not worth it_.

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><p>The first time they talked was in a greenhouse. Juliana loved spending time there because they reminded her of her home. Education in Brazil was very different, and she couldn't help but consider this an adventure. For starters, they didn't use a wand. Kid's magical abilities showed up when they were little and they usually started their training when they were around five years old.<p>

Another big difference was the fact that they were very close to the "muggle" society (God, she _loathed_ that word), and they studied their school subjects as well. She was so used to consider magical and non-magical people as equals, that the concept that it wasn't like that on this place was very hard for her to completely understand.

On her hand she had a bowl and was carefully touching a plant on the opposite side of the greenhouse entrance. That's why she didn't hear him enter, and he didn't hear her speaking until he started walking to where she was, still oblivious to her presence.

"**You are absolutely gorgeous. I love how they take care of you here. I promise I'm only taking one, that's all I need.**" Her voice was low and sweet, as if talking to a small child, and he walked faster until he finally found the source of the sound. She was carefully removing one petal from a red plant_. _And she was _talking_ to it.

Why would she talk to a plant? Was she stupid?

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Severus asked slowly, almost without realizing it. If she was actually talking to a plant she had to be more of an idiot than he had initially thought.

Said thought was only reinforced when he paid attention to her appearance: she was barefoot, her shirt was rumpled and out of her skirt, which was folded and was shorter. Her tie was being used to keep her hair from falling. She jumped and brought her hand to her chest.

"Jesus, you nearly gave me a heart attack." She tried to joke but he didn't laugh. She rolled her eyes. "I'm allowed to be here, I have a note." She said before taking a piece of parchment out of her pocket and waving it with her hand in front of his face. He didn't realize he had moved closer.

"I didn't mean that, I mean why were you talking to a plant?" Her eyebrows shot up and her eyes widened.

"You are joking right?" His serious face showed that he wasn't. "Aren't you Severus Snape? I had been told you were good at Potions and Herbology. _Not so good,_ apparently." She whispered mostly to herself with a dry laugh and turned again to her bowl, picking it with the rest of her stuff.

His face quickly morphed into anger and he barely resisted the urge to scream at her that _she really was the idiot he had thought she was._ She put her shoes on and tried to walk past him, but he grabbed her arm to stop her. They were really close now, and her heart was beating so fast she tought it was going to pop out of her chest.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He said, gritting his teeth.

"First of all." She said taking his hand from her arm and freeing herself, even though he didn't want to let her go. "If you ever grab me like that again I swear I'm going to make you pay for it." She said in a serious tone looking at him dead in the eye. He took a step back, realizing they were too close, and instantly looked at her with disdain.

"Second..." She added and the angry look disappeared from her face as fast as it came. "And just because I'm a good person and I know you're excellent at potions... _yes_, I was just trying to piss you off before..." She said while searching on her bag for something, while he looked at her with a confused frown. "Umm... no, no, not this one, no, Portuguese, Portuguese. Aha! Here we go." She said smiling as she pulled a book from her bag. "This is the only book I have on English that actually has some of what we learn in Brazil. I have tons of others that have the same things but they are on Portuguese, so you can keep this one. And before you ask, no. They can't be translated by any of your spells." She tried to hand him the book but he wouldn't take it, so she left it on the table. "I have to go, it's getting late. Read it, you'll see it probably has knowledge you've never heard of. Oh, and the answer to why was I talking to a plant is there." She said tapping the cover of the bok twice with her index finger and smiled at him before leaving.

The entire situation had him so confused that he spent a few good minutes just standing there, trying make some sense out of it.

_What had just happened? _

He looked at the book for some time before hesitantly putting it inside his bag and leaving, the original reason for his visit to the greenhouse completely forgotten.


	3. Chapter 3

**Okaaay, here's the third chapter, it's a bit longer than the others. Enjoy it! Or don't!**

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><p>Once the realization of their descovery fully hit them, they could only stare with their mouths opened in surprise.<p>

"Close your mouths." Snape told them monotonously. "I am inclined to believe that by now you have understood the gravity of the situation."

"Bloody hell!" Ron screamed suddenly, pulling his hair with both hands.

"RONALD!" Molly tried to scold him but he wasn't listening anymore.

"How is that even-? You don't have a ring!" He squealed suddenly as if he had made the discovery of the century, pointing at his left hand.

Severus looked at him with a sneer. "Don't I, Mr. Weasley?" Juliana could barely contain her smile at the kid's face.

"That was not there! I SWEAR THAT RING WAS NOT THERE A MOMENT AGO." Ron said desperately looking around for someone to support him, but the others where still quiet.

"Perception spell." Hermione said suddenly and every head turned to look at her.

"You are quite right, Miss Granger. The ring on Severus hand has a complicated spell that allows him to wear it without anyone noticing. Perception Spells are very common and easy, but they can also be easily broken. For this one to work the casting of the spell was very difficult, since we needed to be able to fool _You Know Who_ himself. It also has a bonding spell that has allowed us to help both Severus and Juliana more than once, when it was very needed. I hope that answers your doubt of why they just don't stop using them."

"So long story short, If word gets out that my father is married and has a child, they kill us both and him. And you don't want the only spy you have on Voldemort's side to die, believe me." Cassandra spoke for the second time. "Now, where am I gonna stay? I really need to sleep. And a window. Preferably big enough that clean air can actually get inside. Do you have a backyard?" She asked Sirius and he nodded. "God. I can't breathe here." She finished with a sigh.

"Now Cassandra, before that we need to know if they are willing to make the Vow." Dumbledore said looking at each one of them.  
>A chorus of <strong><em>Yes I am<em>** and **_Yes_** were heard, and one by one they performed the Vow.

"Mom, I _really_ need to get out, I can't breathe." Cassandra said lowly to her mother with her hands balled into fists.

"So Sirius, about that backyard you had..." Juliana said and Sirius led them outside, to a very small place with overgrown grass and leaves everywhere.

"Jesus Christ! I thought you said you had a backyard, not a hell hole!" Cassandra whispered worriedly and immediately took her shoes off and went out. Sirius and her mother came back to the room where everyone was silent, except for Albus and Severus who were talking privately.

"Now why don't you go and introduce yourselves to Cassandra, I don't think you've noticed that you haven't yet." Molly said with a smile and ushered them out of the room. Once they reached the door Fred was the first one to speak.

"How come Sirius never told us he had a backyard?" He asked a bit annoyed.

"Because this clearly can't be considered as one." Cassandra complained from the spot on the floor where she was sitting, taking deep and slow breaths. _She'__s right_, Fred thought. The place was barely bigger than a bathroom and was covered by cement walls that were tall as the roof of the house. Still, it had grass so things could grow there, and it kind of had fresh air, which was a relief after all the dust the house had inside.

"Sorry we didn't introduce ourselves inside, but you need to understand that this is as big as a shock can get. If there was something we never thought could happen, it was probably this. Merlin... that came out really rude. Sorry. I'm Ginny." The redhead extended her hand and Cassandra shook it with a smile. "This are my brothers Fred, George, and Ron, and that's his friend Hermione." Everyone waved awkwardly and she smiled.

"I'm Cassie, I told you already..." No one talked and the tension in the air could be sliced with a knife. "This is _so_ awkward." She said with a laugh and shook her head. "So you all go to Hogwarts right?" When they nodded, she continued. "I was supposed to go there this year, you know, but things got so messed up that I'm going to Salem. My parents say that it's much safer there, because Voldemort's is still pretty much only big on Europe, but whatever. I _wanted_ to go to Hogwarts. Well, in the end anything works, to be honest. I need the experience. Apart from my father and very rarely my mother I don't know other people who actually use wands." She smiled at them. "I started rambling, didn't I? God, I should just shut up and leave." She laughed shyly again but it was cut short by one of the twins. She didn't know which one it was.

"People who actually use wands? What does that mean?" She raised her eyebrows.

"You know... people who use wooden sticks to make magic. You use wands... right? I mean everyone here uses wands as far as I know." She asked confused.

"Do people not use wands where you come from?" The other twin asked and she shook her head. "Why not? Wait, where do you come from?"

"Beacause it's too dangerous to rely on a wand. If they take it from you, you are basically defenseless. I'm from Brazil, by the way."

"We need to talk." Hermione said and after that they all went to the girls room. It had a big window, and Cassandra automatically opened when she entered.

"Are you claustrophobic?" Ginny asked while sitting on her bed.

"No, not really." She said while inhaling fresh air from outside before sitting on a chair. "I just start to feel sick on places like this one, neglected for so long that they begin to _smell _abandoned. I'm used to being outdoors a lot." She smiled weakly.

"Uh... so about your magic..." Hermione started and they all looked at her.

"Yeah, what do you want to know?"

"Well everything basically. I mean, I never studied any other types of magic, I didn't know some people didn't need wands..." she was cut off by Cassie.

"No one needs wands actually." Hermione raised her eyebrows. "I mean... uh..." She struggled to find the right words. "You know when you are a kid and you start blowing things up or making things float, your first sings of being a witch or a wizard?" They nodded. "Well you are not using a wand, and yet you still can do it. Now, in _your_ culture, it's stated that you need a wand to canalize your magic and avoid making mistakes. On _my_ culture, we are taught control for the first time when we start showing any signs. Start teaching kids at a very young age makes them able to fully control their powers without needing to use a wand. Of course there are disadvantages. I mean, you can say a word a fix a broken glass, I can't do it without a wand, I don't know what my patronus is... well, at least for now. But when you need to say _incendio_, I can do this." She extended her hand and a flame erupted from it, floating in the air. She looked at their shocked expressions with a smile and closed her hand, the flame dying.

"Since we are kids, we are taught control of the elements, and when we are about to begin our last year, we can choose to be part of an exchange program to go to a magic school in Europe or North America to familiarize with their customs. They can send one of their students to familiarize with ours, as well. I don't think that this year Europe will get anyone, though. It's too dangerous, and everyone knows it." Her expression turned sad and everyone was silent for a few minutes.

"Aren't you gonna talk? It's starting to get umcomfortable real fast here." She said scratching the back of her head, looking at the floor.

"I'm sorry." One of the twins said suddenly and she looked up. "I'm hardly at loss of words and honestly there are a million things I could say but most of them can be considered as rude or inappropriate." Cassandra laughed.

"I think I'd be the judge of that." She replied and he looked like he was thinking what he was going to say.

"You speak English very well." Ron interrupted him and she rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Thank you, I do have a British father after all."

"Yeah, about that... how did it happen? He had to be really young when your mother got pregnant." Her face morphed and Fred knew he made a mistake. "Sorry, forget I asked." He said quickly.

"No, it's okay. It's not that. _He was_ really young after all. And it _was_ a mistake. I'd never say this to anyone I have just met but on the other hand, you have just made an Unbreakable Vow to protect me and my mother so... I feel like I owe you this." She ran a hand trough her hair and Fred cursed himself. She was silent for some time, searching the right words to say on her mind.

"Well...okay. So... my mom met my father on his last year at Hogwarts, stuff happened, and they started dating on secret. She got sorted into Hufflepuff, and if Slytherins knew what he was doing, they were going to kill her and him. And I mean it _literally_. My father's classmates were pretty much Death Eaters in training." She stopped and took a deep breath. "Now it gets kinda awkward to tell you, but whatever. My parents are both exceptional at making potions, and they were both able to brew a contraceptive potion that was to be drank after having sex." They scrunched up their faces at that. "Don't look at me like that, I did tell you it was awkward. Well... there was one day, about two months before the school year ended and they graduated, word got out that my mom was madly in love with my dad. They didn't know it wasn't unrequited. The Slytherins already despised Hufflepuffs and hated my mom. So one night when she was going back to her dorm, they hexed so bad that she spent a week unconscious on the infirmary." They were surprised at this, but didn't interrupt her. "That meant that the only way to avoid getting pregnant was to make an abortion. Which she didn't want. She knew this was going to change her life and could totally ruin it..." They all cringed at her choice of words. "But she accepted it. My father, however, was feeling pretty damn guilty about the whole thing by then and told her that they couldn't see each other again because it was too dangerous. After that _something happened,_" she said with a tone that told them not to ask what it was, "and he joined the Death Eaters, completely ignoring her until Voldemort's downfall. That's when Dumbledore helped her and she was finally able to tell him that he had a daughter. You imagine the rest." She finished, her voice starting to shake. Everyone was quiet for a while.

"I'm sorry if I look like an idiot but this is so hard to believe, Snape is actually married..." She rolled her eyes at Fred or George.

"Yes, he is married." Uncomfortable silence filled the room. Cassie scratched the back of her head and rose from her chair. "Well... I kinda have to go unpack and all that so... see you later." She waved awkwardly and left hurriedly.

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><p>As soon as she was gone, everyone started talking.<p>

"How can _she_ be Snape's daughter? She doesn't even look like him." Ron said.

"Uh... _she does_. They have the same eyes and hair... but hers is not so greasy, though." Ginny reasoned. "Besides we don't even know her yet, she could be just like him. Her personality, I mean."

"Like hell she could. She didn't look ready to kill everyone that got in her way. That's enough proof that she is not like him to me." George said with a shrug.

"But we still can't know. Anyway, can we stop talking about this? I still can't fully believe it and i really need to sleep my way through the understanding phase." Fred spoke. The others nodded, and with that he stood up and left the room with his twin behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Warning: You might think Severus is out of character.**

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><p>The second time Severus and Juliana met was in the library.<p>

There was a quidditch game between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw that day, so neither of them wanted to go. As opposed to the rest to the school it seemed, because the library was completely desolated.

On his first year, Severus had found a semi-hidden place on the very back of the library; it was a section where the books were mostly unused so now it was always empty. There was a big comfortable couch and some tables, and he could be on complete silence and peaceful solitude.

That day, however, there was a _slight_ change on his routine. When he was getting closer to his place, he heard some noises. There where never noises, so he carefully looked past one of the bookshelves and found a girl sitting on his couch. And not _any_ girl, it was the Hufflepuff exchange student. He resisted the urge to scoff and settled for rolling his eyes and walking to her.

She was too immersed on her book to notice him approaching, so the sound of his voice made her jump.

"Is it always going to be like this? I don't like getting scared that much..." She said looking up at him with a smile.

"What are you doing here?" He asked roughly and she rolled her eyes.

"Reading. I thought it was pretty obvious." She said before going back to her book.

"You cannot be here." He insisted.

"Why not? If you could please enlighten me." She said sarcastically, looking up again. The answer '_Because I found this place and it's mine and it's the_ _only place where I actually don't feel miserable and alone'_ that popped up on his mind was not the one he was going to give her.

Not consciously, at least, because when he saw her surprised face and how fast she got up from the couch he came to the realization that he had actually said it out loud.

"I'm _so _sorry. Oh my god, I didn't... I mean... uh... I'll leave, don't worry." She said picking up her stuff very quickly. "I'll leave you alone now." She said to him as she swung her bag on her shoulder, but before she left she stopped, biting her lip while pondering _if she should do what she wanted to do_, and after a few seconds turned to look at him, a decided look on her face. "I know you probably can't stand me because I'm in Hufflepuff but... I'm up for talking, or just listening if you want to." She gave him a small smile and turned to go again when she felt him grab her arm. This time wasn't like the last, though. It was gentle and she realized he hadn't moved since the last time he spoke.

"Don't go." He said looking at her in the eye for a few seconds before he blinked and let go of her arm. "I mean... we can both be here if we don't disturb each other." He finished and was surprised to see her smiling widely.

"Okay. Yeah." _She doesn't look disgusted, that's new, _he tought.

She left her bag on the table and pulled a chair to sit. She started to do her homework while he did whatever he was doing. She was too nervous to look at him.

When she dared to look up, his back was facing her and he was searching for a book. She couldn't help but admire his body, his hair, his hands. _The hands he had... long fingers... pretty, pretty hands... _His voice took her out of her trance and she realized she was staring at him.

"Sorry, what did you say?" She asked, embarrassed.

"The book you gave me. You were right. There were things I didn't know and will help me so... um... thank you." He finished and turned his head a bit to look at her.

She smiled brightly again and he really couldn't understand how was she smiling _so much_ at him. "You are welcome. Maybe we could... I mean, study together sometime...?" She said, and he supressed a smile. Someone actually wanting to study with him just because they wanted to was not something it happened everyday.

"Yeah... sure. If that's what you want." Severus wasn't really sure why he accepted. Maybe if the circumstances were different and he actually had a best friend like he used to he wouldn't crave for human contact so much that he'd accept to be near a Hufflepuff, let alone _her_. But right now he was lonely, and someone to talk to felt like the only thing that could keep him sane. That was the reason he accepted as valid at that moment, at least.

"Yes, it is. Definitely." She blushed again and looked down to her parchment. _She actually blushed? Why the hell was she blushing?_ "Oh, I'm Juliana, by the way. I'm pretty sure you didn't know my name." He had the decency to look embarrassed and she laughed again. He realized he never heard someone laugh so much on his presence since... _Lily_. That thought was enough to ruin his mood. He hoped she wouldn't notice, after all no one ever did, but she surprised him one more time.

Seeing the sudden change on his expression, Juliana became worried.

"What's wrong? And before you answer, even if you say 'nothing' I know something happened because I recognize that look. I've seen it a lot before. You don't need to tell me what is it, but _do not say that nothing is wrong _because I'll know it's a lie." She turned serious and he sighed and sat on the chair opposite to hers.

"How do I know you can be trusted?" He asked even if deep inside he already knew he could, and probably did already. There was something about the way she smiled and talked and just _existed _that made him think she could be trusted. She looked at him in the eye and pointed at the yellow and black on her scarf.

"Loyalty is one of my many virtues." She replied with a smile. _She sure likes to smile a lot_.

"How do you know I deserve your loyalty?" He got serious, so she did too.

"How do I know you don't? I believe in something called the benefit of the doubt."

"Slytherins hate Hufflepuffs. I'm sure they have done something to you more than once." He reasoned.

"Is everything they do automatically your responsibility too? As far as I know, you have never even looked at me twice, so why would I care what other Slytherins have done to me? I'm trying to be your friend, not theirs." That answer caught him off guard.

"You're trying to be my friend? Why?" He was actually confused.

"Why wouldn't I? I can't think of a single reason I wouldn't want to be your friend." Juliana realized he had very serious confidence issues. There was nothing wrong with trying to make him feel a little better, right?

"I can. I can think of thousands of reasons."

"Do tell, please." She said, crossing her arms.

"It just doesn't make any sense that someone like you could possibly want to be even near someone like me." He hadn't realized he had let his walls fall down, but she did.

"What is exactly _someone like you_ and _someone like me_? Someone like you has to be someone outstandingly brilliant, for sure, and someone like me has to be the new girl who apparently, according to most of the school beliefs, enjoys being everyone's_ new toy. _I'll tell you a secret: she _**definitely**_ doesn't."

The look on his face was priceless. That answer he wasn't expecting.

"I know that you see yourself as less than others and that sometimes you wish you could be someone else, because their lives seem so much easier than yours. I feel it too, Severus." She paused. "Do you want us to be alone together?" She gave him a little smile.

"That doesn't make sense."

"I know. I also know that was not an answer."

Silence.

"Okay."


	5. Chapter 5

**If you find any character to be different to what they really are remember what I already said: **

**-I'm only writing this story to satisfy the need to see something I wanted to happen finally happening, **

**-This is my first story and English is not my native language, which only makes it harder for me to write certain things I wouldn't have any trouble writing in Spanish.**

**Okay. That being said, here's the fifth chapter.**

* * *

><p>"George? Are you awake?" Silence. "George." Silence. "George!"<p>

"What the bloody hell do you want? Let me sleep." His twin managed to say with his head buried on his pillow.

"I can't sleep, George, wake up." The only response he got was loud snoring, and with a groan he got out of his bed.

Fred hadn't been able to close his eyes since he had laid his head on his pillow. He had too many things he wanted to know on his mind and just couldn't stop thinking about them. Obviously all the answers for this questions could be easily found in one person, who was currently living in the same house as him. But he felt too intimidated to even try to talk to her. Not really intimidated _by her_, but by her father. He knew Severus Snape was not a man you wanted to cross, and what a better way to cross him than pissing off his daughter by asking something he shouldn't?

With all of that on his head he made his way down the stairs as quietly as he could. The house was very dark, so he used his wand to see the way.  
>When he got to the kitchen he served himself a glass of milk and sat on the table. He was deep in thought when the sound of footsteps took him out of his trance. On the doorway appeared Cassie, who looked surprised to see him there.<p>

"Oh, hello." She said with a smile he returned. "I was just going to get a glass of water."

"Do you want some?" He asked her pointing to his own glass.

"No, I don't really like milk. But thanks."

Awkward silence.

"So..." He started and coughed to diffuse the tension. It didn't work. "Your parents..." She looked at him with her eyebrows raised as she finished her glass of water.

"What about my parents?"

"Did they leave already?" She smiled slightly.

"Yeah." She put the glass back on the cupboard. "You shouldn't feel like you need to make small talk, you know. If it doesn't come naturally just don't do it. I'm going back to bed."

"No, wait!" She turned and looked at him. "I wasn't trying, I mean, I was, but... I really wanted to...? Did that make sense? I'm not usually like this, I'm not really used to not knowing how to deal with things getting awkward..." She came back and sat beside him.

"So you just turn your cool and bubbly self off during the night? Or am I just making you uncomfortable? Actually, am I making you all feel uncomfortable?" He was about to answer but she cut him off. "Be honest, please." He spent a little time trying to find the right words.

"Speaking hypothetically, If I were to tell you that we all kind of absolutely hate your father... on a scale from one to royally pissed, how angry would you be?" She smiled and played along.

"Hypothetically?" He nodded and smiled back. "Well I'd say about... one." He raised his eyebrow.

"One? Wow. That's very not angry. Are you sure? It doesn't bother you that we absolutely despise your father and more than once dreamed about making his life a living hell?"

"Well when you put it like that it does make me angry. But it only means that he is doing what he's supposed to do and he is doing it well. He has a reputation to maintain. His life depends on it._** Literally**_." She looked at him and then down at her hands.

"Never thought about it that way." Fred said after a while.

"Of course not, you were to busy thinking how to make his life a living hell." This time they both laughed.

"You know, I never tought Snape could actually get married, let alone have children, and I would've never believed that his child could be like you." She frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"This will come out as rude. I apologize in advance so you've got nothing on me." She rolled her eyes. "I think that I would have believed that If Snape had a daughter she would be an exact image of him, but female. Never would've expected to be someone... like you." He finished lamely.

"Okay. I'm just gonna take that as a compliment and we can both be happy."

"Yes, thank you for that."

"I'm getting really sleepy here but I have one more thing to say: I know my father probably gave you hell these past years but I can assure you he didn't do it without a reason. He is not evil, contrary to popular belief." She rose from her chair. "And with that I bid you goodnight. Bye Fred."

"Goodnight." he replied with a smile. "Wait, how do you know I'm Fred?" She smiled cheekily and looked at his chest, where a big "F" could be seen.

She laughed at him and he joined her. She laughed harder because his laugh was too infectious.

"Keep it down you're going to wake every one up." He whispered while gesturing to her wildly with his hands, trying to get her to shut up. She just covered her mouth with her hands but the muffled sound was even funnier, so she kept laughing. He stood up from his chair and tried to go to where she was but on the way he tripped.

"Fred!" She gasped and he was expecting to hit the hard ground but it never happened. His eyes were closed and he could feel the wind on this face. _Wait, what?_ He opened his eyes to find himself looking at the ground with Cassie in front of him with her hands extended. She carefully lowered the air blast that was keeping him up and and he stood again.

"What the hell was that?" He asked with wide eyes.

"I told you we are taught to control the elements... Th-"

"What else can you do? Would you show me?"

Her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Of course!"


	6. Chapter 6

After a few weeks of getting to know each other, Juliana started to notice that when Severus opened up to her, when he really talked about his problems, he didn't completely realize what he was doing. Even if he knew she was there listening and talking to him, it mostly felt like he was talking to himself, trying to talk about what was happening like he didn't already know it. Like he was trying to convince himself of something.

Almost every day after classes and before dinner they were on the library, talking, studying, and just being together. She realized that the best way to get him to open up was to not say anything whenever she saw he arrived upset. After a little while he just started speaking on his own, while she listened to everything he said. After he finished, she calmed him down.

He always asked her about her day, if she was having any troubles, and listened just like she did with him.

"Juliana..." he started one day while they were studying.

"Yes?" She replied without looking up.

"Does not bother you that we are keeping this friendship as a secret?" She closed her eyes, sighed and stopped writing.

"We have talked about this."

"Yes, we have. But sometimes..." He took a deep breath and looked at her in the eye. "Sometimes I wish we could just spend time together in other places. Without worrying about what people would think."

"You know I do too. But you have to be reasonable. You were the one who told me that if your housemates knew about it, we're as good as dead." He sighed and run his hands through his hair.

"I know. I know. Forget I said anything."

"Who would have thought you'd want to be spending time with a Hufflepuff. We're not so bad after all, right?" She tried to joke after a while.

He smiled at her attempt to lighten the mood. "Just you, I still think they are mostly idiots." He answered without really thinking, and returned to his work.

"That's not fair. You don't even have classes with Hufflepuffs now. How on Earth could you know how they are like?" She was definitely getting angry at this point. Severus always tried to avoid the subject of her being on _that house_, and he had done it quite well so far, but apparently this time there was no escape. He sighed and stopped writing to look at her.

"When was the last time they won the House Cup?" She opened her mouth in surprise and raised her eyebrows.

"You can't be serious! What's that have to do with anything?"

"If they can win the House Cup, it's because they don't get enough house points. If they don't get enough house points, it's because they hardly make anything worth them."

"You are such an asshole, Severus!" By now she was furious, and he was getting angry too. He couldn't be the one who was wrong, he had been on the school for seven years, she had only been there for a couple months. "Do you really think house points are what measure how good or smart a person can be?"

"Yes. What else could possibly prove it?"

"There is no need to prove you are smart! You just are! They don't need house points or answering everything to know they are! And you know what?" She said picking her stuff and putting everything on her bag with more force and speed than usual. She got up and turned his chair so he was facing her, and brought her face down so their noses were just centimetres apart. "If you tell someone that they are worthless every day, after some time they will end up believing it. Even if they're not. You of all people should know that." She left before he could even begin to think of an answer. He cursed and left the library shortly after her.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay Juliana? You've been looking a little down these days." Amanda, one of the kind-of-friends she had made on her time in the school, asked worriedly.<p>

"Yeah." She replied with a weak smile. "I'm just getting sick, I think." Amanda didn't look like she believed her, but knew best than to ask about something when it was obvious the other person didn't want to talk about it.

"Okay, if you need anything just tell any of us, yeah?" She said pointing at herself and the people surrounding her. Juliana looked at them one by one, deep in thought. _How could anyone call them idiots?_ They were, without a doubt, the best people you could find on the school. What was left for the world if being loyal, kind and hard working was considered the same as being weak and stupid? _That_ was a depressing thought.

She put her fork down and after saying goodbye, left the table to go to her dorm.

She wasn't getting sick, of course, she was just sad. What Severus said hurt. It really did. She knew this people, they were absolutely amazing. They just didn't want to be the center of attention and didn't care about being the best. That wasn't a bad thing, was it?

No. Of course not.

Everyone was still in the Great Hall, so she was walking alone down the halls. Or so she tought. When she turned the corner she bumped into someone. She inwardly cursed. Who else could it be?

"Juliana. Can we talk?" Severus said in a whisper.

"I have to go, and we can't be seen together." She answered curtly.

"Please. It's important." She sighed and nodded. He grabbed her hand and motioned her to follow him.

"A closet? Nice." She said after he locked the door with his wand and put a silencing charm on it. "What did you need?" She asked crossing her arms. She really wanted to forgive him for what he said, but in order to do that, he needed to be sorry.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry for what I said the other day. I've been thinking a lot about how I should apologize and I know I was wrong and I really don't know any Hufflepuffs beside you because for years I have been told that they weren't worth my time and that they were less than me and I just didn't know better." He took a deep breath. "But I know they're not. I know. Because of you. I am truly sorry for what I did." It was dark and he couldn't see the smile forming on her face. When she was about to answer that he was _obviously_ forgiven he interrupted her. "I... I understand if you don't want us to be friends anymore. And I won't bother you again. I just wanted to make sure you knew th-"

"Wait, what? No. Hold up there. I don't want us to stop being friends! Why would you even think that! I just wanted you to apologize! Oh my God! I'm sorry if I made you think that!" She cried out worriedly and, to his surprise, hugged him.

They never hugged before, and at first he didn't know what to do. After a few seconds he hugged back and pressed his face on her hair. She smelled like coconut and nature, and he loved it. He closed his eyes and got lost in the moment, until she pulled away a bit to look at him. Their eyes connected and their noses were barely touching.

He didn't know what she was doing until he realized she was looking at his lips and was beginning to lean in.

"What are you doing?" He asked slowly in a whisper, afraid that she might pull away. She didn't.

"Can I kiss you?" She asked in the same tone.

"Yes, please." He finished and closed the distance between their faces.

Neither of them would want to say it out loud and admit that the romantic crap was actually not so far from the truth, but they couldn't deny what they were feeling. There were _stars_ and _fireworks_ and _butterflies_ and _electricity_ and it just felt _so right_. Juliana deepened the kiss as he picked her up, tangling her legs on his waist and pulling her even closer to him. After a few minutes they were both breathless and there was nothing that could erase the smiles from their faces.


	7. Chapter 7

When George woke up the next morning, he was surprised to see his brother looking at him, wide awake.

"Did you sleep... at all? Your eyes look kinda red." He asked as he sat on his bed and stretched his arms.

"Sleep? Of course I didn't sleep. I didn't sleep at all last night. I'm suspecting that in a few hours I'll faint, but right now I won't."

"Fred, are you okay?" George asked walking to his twin's bed, trying to take a closer look.

"I'm more than okay George! You need to see it! You don't know how amazing it is! And she said that anyone can learn it with time! We could be anyone! The things we could do!" He screamed grabbing him from his shoulders and shaking him.

"Who's she? Cassandra? What are you talking about?" George asked, confused.

"Yes Cassandra! Oh the things _she_ can do! At first it was all air and then water and fire and the grass got greener and it's _so cool_. But you need to see it for yourself."

"Okay... " he said slowly and walked to the bathroom. Fred followed.

"Where is she now?" he asked as he started to brush his teeth.

"In her room, I suppose. But you can't see now. She is probably sleeping. She got really tired at the end of the demonstration." Fred said.

"Demonstration of what?" George asked.

"HER MAGIC!" He answered.

* * *

><p>When they arrived on the kitchen for breakfast, Fred wasn't surprised to see that Cassie wasn't there. They went to bed around six and it had only been three hours from that.<p>

"Why isn't Cassie here?" Ginny asked.

"The poor dear said she didn't get any sleep last night. It was her first night here, after all. I'll wake her up for lunch. Anyway. Don't worry about her. Today you are going to begin cleaning." Molly said.

A chorus of groans was heard and Molly scoffed. "I won't have any of that. Now finish your breakfast and start working."

* * *

><p>They cleaned until it was time for lunch.<p>

"Hermione, can you go wake Cassandra up? I'm sure she's hungry by now." Molly requested and Hermione nodded and went upstairs. Five minutes later, she came down alone.

"She's not answering. And I'm pretty sure I heard snoring. She must be really worn out, I don't think she'll want to eat anything." She explained.

"Oh, poor thing. I'll save something for her." Molly said.

Fred and George looked at each other and rose from the table at the same time.

"Wonderful meal, mum." Began George.

"Absolutely marvelous, probably the best so far, if I say so myself." Continued Fred.

"But we really think that we should go back to our work."

"Because the house really needs to be cleaned, and we just love doing it!" They both smiled as their mother looked at them with narrowed eyes and disapparated with aloud _crack_.

"I told them to stop doing that! Merlin!" They heard Molly scream from downstairs.

"Now my dear Fred, do you really think our friend is sleeping or do you think we could finally find our little snoring device?" George said with a smile.

"Well George, I think we should incline for the latter. But anyway, why did we even make a little snoring device? How useful can it be?" He asked his brother with a frown.

"I don't know," he answered stopping in front of Cassie's room. "We should ask Cassandra, who, as I hear, is sleeping rather soundly, with all that snoring going on. I think it would be a shame is someone found out that she was lying..." He said rather loudly with his mouth close to the door.

They waited a few seconds and the door opened.

"Shut up." Cassie said in a playful tone. "Come in and don't say a word."

They both entered her room and instantly began rummaging through her stuff. When they finally got bored of asking _what is this?_ and _what does this do?_, they settled for finally asking her why was she pretending to be asleep.

"I just need to write quite a lot on this letters and once I really get into it, if I stop for too long I can't start writing again because my mind drifts away. That's why. My mom is coming today and she is the one who's going to deliver them, so I need to finish." She replied without looking up from the paper she was writing on.

"You know, Cassie..." Fred started.

"We were wondering how could this pretty little thing..." George said picking up a little blue box that was on her dresser.

"Ended up in your room..."

"...when yesterday it was in ours." She smiled and continued writing.

"Oh it was? It must have been another one. I believe I've been having that box all my life." She responded in a mocking serious tone.

"Oh really?" Fred played along. "Then what does these W's mean on the bottom?"

"Those?" She said looking up and he nodded.

"Something like Weasley Wizard Wheezes, I think." Their smiles fell instantly.

"How the bloody hell do you know that?" Fred whisper/screamed at her, not loud enough to be heard by anyone else outside the room.

"What were you doing prying in our room? That was private!" George said in the same tone. Her mood changed in a second.

"You better not use that tone with me again." She said as angry as they were. She got up from her chair, pulled a paper from drawer on her nightstand and threw it to their feet. "This," She said pointing at the paper that read _Weasley Wizard Wheezes Skiving Snackboxes_ and had some drawings of the products they contained. "Fell from YOUR pocket last night along with that goddamn snoring thing, before you went to bed. Be _fucking thankful_ I was the one who found it and not your mother. I can imagine how fun that would've been." She said sarcastically, talking directly to Fred. "Now take your stuff and leave." She finished walking to the door and opening it. She was absolutely pissed by now.

The twins, on the other side, were beginning to look ashamed.

"We're sorry." They said at the same time.

"Good." She replied crossing her arms.

"I had forgotten I put it in my pocket. I thought it was in our room." Fred said walking to her. "I'm sorry for assuming. I know it was wrong." Well, it certainly was hard to be mad too long when they sounded all serious and worried and had that _goddamn puppy dog stare _going on.

"No, it's okay. I should have given it to you instead of keeping it, anyway. It just that those designs looked really cool and I wanted to see what they were. That was an invasion of privacy, I'm sorry." She looked up at them and smiled.

"Do we still have to leave or..." George asked playfully.

"Nah, you can stay if you like." She replied walking to her desk and sitting before she began writing again. "But close the door, they still think I'm asleep."

George did as told and they both sat on her bed while they watched her writing. They were silent for approximately 15 seconds.

"So... who are you writing?" Fred said as he examined the things on her nightstand, wondering why she didn't stop him from touching everything.

"My friends from Brazil. I'm almost done, actually."

"No boyfriend?" He asked and George laughed.

"Smooth." He whispered.

"No boyfriend." She confirmed as she began put the last letter on an envelope. He smiled goofily and George nudged him on the side.

"Control yourself, mate." He whispered laughing at his twin.

"Shut up." Fred nudged him back.

That was the beginning of silent fight Cassandra found hilarious. After some time enjoying the show, she coughed and they stopped, surprised.

"I don't even want to know." She laughed. "So... about that piece of paper I found. Am I allowed to ask anything about it or is it super confidential?"

"_It is_ super confidential." Fred began and George followed.

"But we think you can be trusted."


	8. Chapter 8

**Warning: it contains Sirius bashing.**

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><p>Severus and Juliana loved spending time together, but with having to keep their relationship as a secret, they couldn't be together too much apart from the time they were at the library. However, they came up with a solution: sneak out of their dormitories almost every night. Avoiding the prefects was not too difficult, so they didn't have any problems. At least for the first week.<p>

One night Severus met Juliana by the kitchens -because they were the closest place to her dorm- and when they moved closer to kiss, both of them felt the hair on the back of their necks stand up.

"Someone's following us." Juliana whispered to Severus as he hugged her.

"I know." Was his low reply.

Before they pulled away Juliana already had felt Severus reach for his wand. So she wasn't surprised when she heard him whisper/scream _Homenum Revelio. _What surprised her was the person that appeared in front of them.

"Black? What the hell are you doing following us?" Juliana asked, annoyed.

"Well, I wasn't _following_ you." He started with a smug smile. "I just happened to be around here at the same time as you. I have better things to do with my time than chasing you, Snivellus." he said with disdain. Severus was furious. Juliana held his hand to help calming him down, and the gesture didn't go unnoticed by Sirius.

"So you two really are a thing?" He said, mockingly. "Now that's a good joke. Someone wanting to spend time with you on their own will? Don't worry Juliana, in no time you will be running away from him. I know _Lily_ did." Severus hand was gripping his wand so hard his knuckles were completely white.

"Black. Get out of here or I'll make you pay for it. And you better shut up about this or you will regret it." Severus hissed in a low and very dangerous tone. Juliana was getting worried. Sirius was enjoying every second of it, and he had on his mind just the right thing to finish him off.

"You know, Juliana..." He said coming closer, Severus wand now pointing at him. He didn't care. "A girl like you could do so much better. And what's better on this school than Sirius Black?" He winked at her and she resisted the urge to gag.

"You know, Sirius..." She said walking to him and letting go of Severus hand, who began to have an inner panic attack. _Of course she is going to go with him_, he thought. Sirius was smiling wide."I'm only saying this once, because even if I think you are as dumb as troll, I have hope that you'll understand this simple sentence." His smile vanished, along with Severus inner struggle. "I would rather drop dead than be seen with you. Or any of your friends, for that matter. I don't think what kind of charm you think you have, but I assure you the only reaction I get when you are near me is an excessive urge to vomit." He took a step back and she moved closer. "And..." she lowered her voice so only he could listen. "You. Smell. Like. A. Dog." He looked her in the eye and he realized _she knew_. Her smug smile only served as confirmation. "You are going to do whatever you have to do to make sure no one knows about me and him."

"Why the hell would I do that? Weren't Hufflepuffs supposed to be kind and all that crap?" He said with malice and narrowed eyes. She laughed dryly.

"Kind, yes. Not _stupid_. We know better to not give kindness to those who do not deserve it. And what could possibly make you think _you_, of all people, do? You know, Sirius... I, myself, believe that in the end, you get what you give." She grabbed his bare wrist and held it tightly on her hand. "You are going to make sure _**no one**_ knows about him and me." She repeated and he felt his wrist getting hot. Too hot. It was painfully hot. He gasped in pain.

"What are you doing? LET ME GO!" He screamed and she let go of his arm.

"What I'm doing is giving you a reason. That..." She said pointing at his burned wrist. "...is a second degree burn. Doing that to you was as easy as breathing for me. You don't want to know what else I can do if you do not do as I say. And stay away from us. You have the way to the infirmary to make up a story about how you got yourself burned. Now, leave." Sirius was beyond pissed at this point but did not argue, he just left.

When he was finally gone she let out a heavy breath and turned to see Severus. However, as she was turning she was pulled into a strong embrace and felt a pair of lips crashing hungrily into hers. She was surprised but did not hesitate to return both the kiss and embrace. When they finally parted to breathe she had a dizzy smile on her face. That was the first time they kissed _like that_.

"Come." He said grabbing her hand and leading her to somewhere on the castle she didn't know. They stopped in front of a weird tapestry. He let go of her hand and began walking in front of it. He did it three times.

"Please, please..." he whispered and she looked at him with her eyebrows raised. He usually knew what he was doing, so she just waited. Just a few seconds later, a door began to appear on the wall. Her eyes opened wide.

"What the hell..." She said, dumbfounded. He sighed, relieved, and grabbed her hand again, opening the door to lead her inside.

If she was dumbfounded before, she didn't know what she felt right now. The room before her was absolutely beautiful: there were candles, carpeted floors, a big couch that looked like the most comfortable thing in the world; it was gorgeous. She turned to him to ask if he had made this for her but the surprised expression on his face told her the answer.

"What is this place?" Juliana asked.

"It's called the Room of Requirement. It appears when someone is in great need, and it adapts to what they want."

"So this is what you wanted?" She asked walking inside to lay into a pile of cushions that looked inviting. They felt like heaven. She closed her eyes and smiled. He couldn't help but smile too, seeing her there, and walked to lay down with her. She intertwined her fingers with his and turned to look at him, their faces really close.

"What I asked for was a nice place where could be together without being bothered." He said and leaned into her.

"This certainly does the job..." She whispered and closed the distance between them. They started a steamy make out session that ended up with her straddling him. However, as good as it felt, Severus really needed to talk to her first.

"Juliana, wait." She looked at him, her face becoming a mixture of scared, curious and worried.

"Why, what happened?" She said and lifted one of her legs to stop straddling him, but he stopped her, and kept her where she was.

"It's not that." He said with one hand caressing her hip where her shirt was lifted and the other going to caress her cheek removing a strand of loose hair from her eye. She sighed contentedly, leaning into his touch, and smiled at him.

"What's wrong?" She asked and moved to lay on top of him, her mouth on his neck, kissing him softly. Now it was his turn to sigh in pleasure.

"I brought you here because I think we need to talk about what happened earlier." He began and she buried her head on his hair and mumbled something he didn't get. "What?" He asked with a smile on his voice. "I can't understand you, love." She said something else and again it came out muffled. "I still don't know what you're saying."

"I said..." She began as she lifted her head and moved so they were both laying on their sides, facing each other with their legs tangled, his hand still on her hip still and hers on his torso. "I love it when you call me that."

"When I call you what?" He asked.

"_Love_. Your accent and your voice make it sound _so_ nice." She said and blushed. He kissed her.

"Well... I love calling you that." She smiled. "But don't avoid the subject." She sighed.

"Fine, but you begin."

"Fair enough." He waited a few seconds, thinking the right way to say what he wanted. He opened his mouth to start a few times but closed it again. Finally, he spoke."When Black said that he was a better choice than me, and you let go of my hand, I honestly tought you were going to go with him." Her expression saddened instantly.

"Severus..." she said, hugging him.

"I just can't understand why you want to be with me. That's why I can't get why you did what you did to him."

"Severus." She said looking at him in the eye. "That fucking bastard had it coming. He tried to kill you for Christ's sake! And got away without being punished! I need you to understand that the fact that it didn't work out with Lily doesn't mean it's not going to work out between us. I want to be with you. I'm certain of it." He kissed her hungrily one more time and when they pulled away she had the dizzy smile again.

"We should never stop doing that." He smiled.

"You know... I could never believe a Hufflepuff could do what you did... I mean threatening and hurting someone like that. I don't mean it as a bad thing. I swear." She smiled.

"I wouldn't do that to someone who didn't deserve it. And to be honest, I think he does. I'm not really into violence but I was too pissed to care. And I wasn't going to go beyond that._ I'm not_ going to go beyond that, but he doesn't have to know that. Besides, he is such an asshole. And it is also the nature of a Hufflepuff to be loyal. Never forget it."

"Are you loyal to me? What does that mean?" He asked.

"It means I root for you. I doesn't mean I agree with everything you do or that I'm worshipping the ground you walk on, it means you can trust me and I won't betray you... unless you betray me first."

"I would never betray you." And with that promise made, they started kissing again.


	9. Chapter 9

**The bolded sentences are meant to be on portuguese.**

* * *

><p>During the afternoon, Juliana arrived to the house with Tonks behind her. She greeted everyone who was in the room looked behind her quickly when she heard fast footsteps coming down the stairs. In no time, she was engulfed on a hug by her daughter.<p>

**"I missed you too."** She said laughing.

**"How's dad?"** She asked immediately. The sad smile on her mother's face was all the answer she needed.

**"Tell him I love him next time you see him, please."** She returned the same smile.

**"I always do. Don't you think we should switch back to English, so no one feels left out?"** She succeeded in changing her daughter's mood.

**"Nah, let them suffer for a bit. Oh! I have the letters. They have their names on them and all that. Don't forget to tell them I said I missed them."**

"Will do." She replied in English.

"Are you really not gonna say hello? I forgave you the other day because it all was a stressful situation but if you really think you are going to ignore me again things will get dangerous." Cassie smiled wide at the sound of the voice behind her. She turned quickly and hugged Tonks with all the strength she had.

* * *

><p>On Tonks' first year at Hogwarts, after she got sorted, professor Sprout told the first years about this amazing student that had come to the school a few years back and got sorted in the house. She told them her name but Tonks wasn't listening. She was an exchange student from Brazil who had a different way of performing magic and excelled at it. She didn't use a wand. Now that was something she wanted to know about. She perked up immediately. It got her so interested she couldn't think of anything else for a week. After that, she went to the professor's office to ask her more about this student. The professor said her name again: Juliana Souza.<p>

She fell in love with that name. It sounded so exotic. It wasn't ugly like _Nymphadora_. She wished she had a name like that. When she wanted to know more, Professor Sprout told her that she could send her a letter. Tonks was overjoyed. It turned out that Pomona never lost touch with her former student, and now they were good friends. She assured her that Juliana wouldn't have any problem receiving mail, but she had to send her a letter telling her first. Tonks agreed. She would have agreed to any condition. She was sure Juliana was her hero. Well... as sure as an 11 year old could be. Tonks could do magic without a wand easily too, and she hadn't met anyone before who shared that quality. She wanted to know how she did it, and she wanted it to read it from her own hand.**  
><strong>

The reply came two days after Pomona sent her letter. The answer was something along the lines of an excited "Yes! Of course! Let her send how many letters she wants!", and when Tonks read it, she almost felt pain on her face from smiling so wide.

Her first letter was shy and had some grammar mistakes. Tonks was trying to play it cool and don't act so interested, but Juliana felt on her words how really curious she was. So she replied answering every question in detail. On her second letter, Tonks was more confident, so she told her about her ability. Juliana was amazed and this time she was the one asking questions. When she got her reply, Tonks couldn't believe it. She was interested on the things she could do! So, on her third letter, along with her answers, she sent a picture. She was smiling and her hair was turning from violet to green. On her reply, Juliana said she was beautiful and sent a picture too. She was with a little girl, and it said her name was Cassandra and that she was her five year old daughter. Her picture wasn't moving, so she asked if she used a muggle camera. "My father has one too." She added. Of course, she also thanked her for telling she was pretty, and replied that Juliana was the most beautiful woman in the entire world. The picture was indeed taken by a muggle camera, and Tonks learned that she lived in a place where muggles and wizards lived side by side, sharing both customs and values. She became enamored with that idea.

The correspondence went for all that year, and on summer vacation, Tonks convinced her mother and father to go to Brazil before their vacation to Rome, just for a week. She whined so much after they refused that Andromeda, after she sent some letters of her own to Juliana (who insisted on them staying with her and her daughter) finally agreed. They traveled by portkey, and when they arrived, both girls were waiting for them. After they officially introduced, Tonks didn't even try and pretend to be shy. She instantly began talking to Juliana, asking things about the place, the weather, that was rather cold, and about the little girl who seemed to be hiding behind her mother's leg. _So this is Cassandra_, she thought.

"Who is this beautiful little girl?" Andromeda asked, leaning forward to take a better look at Cassie. She just got embarrassed and hid her face on her mothers leg again.

"This is Cassie. She doesn't speak too much English yet, she may not know what you say." Juliana answered. Andromeda's mouth formed an 'o' and she smiled. Tonks, however, was intrigued by the little girl. She had a paler complexion than her mother's, and jet black hair that reminded her of her dreadful Potions professor. She quickly erased that comparison, she didn't even want to think about school on holiday.

"Hi. I'm Tonks." She said to the little girl, who lifted her head a bit to look at her. Tonks crossed her eyes and changed her hair color very quickly multiple times, something that caught her attention immediately. She opened her eyes wide and Tonks laughed. "What is your name?"

"Cassie." She replied without taking her eyes off her hair.

And that was all it took, honestly. Cassandra wanted to be all day with Tonks. She was absolutely starstruck by her. Everything Tonks did, Cassie loved. She spent the whole week following after her, playing with her, laughing at the funny animal faces she made. Tonks enjoyed learning things from Juliana and spending time with Cassie.

When they finally had to leave, Cassie was crying and was holding onto Tonks for dear life.

"**Don'tgo.****Don'tgo.****Don'tgo.****Don'tgo.****Don'tgo.****Don'tgo.**" She was saying as she hugged her tightly.

"What is she saying?" Toks asked Juliana as she hugged her back and touched her hair.

"She is saying _don't go_ over and over again. I think she is very fond of you." Juliana said with a small smile.

"Ohhhh... she's so cute." Tonks replied and got an idea. "Could I write to her? Nothing long, I promise, and you could translate it at least until she understands on her own? Maybe she could write me back, too." She said excitedly.

"**Cassandra, Tonks said that she has to go now, but that you can write to her. Would you like to do that?**" Cassie lifted her tear-soaked face to look at her mother and nodded. It didn't take too long after that to convince her to let go of Tonks shirt, and they left.

And that was the beginning. Tonks never stopped writing to them both during her years on Hogwarts, and always spent a week of her summer on Brazil with them. After she graduated and as they friendship increased and the time passed, Tonks spent more and more time with them whenever she could. Sometimes she was the one who traveled, and other times it was them. She became like an older sister to Cassie, as much as Juliana became an older sister to her. Tonks was the first one to know Severus was Cassandra's real father, and the first one to make the Unbreakable Vow. She considered both of them her best friends, as much as they considered her theirs.

* * *

><p>"Say it." Tonks said as they pulled away from their hug.<p>

"Do I have to?" Cassie whined.

"Yup." She replied with a smug smile.

Cassandra rolled her eyes and said _"I'm sorry I ignored you, you are so awesome, how could I not stop to admire something so amazing"_ very fast without breathing.

"Oh, stop it. You're making me blush." Tonks said mockingly. Cassie stuck her tongue at her just as Molly appeared on the room.

"Will you stay for dinner?" Juliana shook her head with a regretful smile and Tonks nodded.

"Not me, sorry. I'm leaving shortly, but I have to talk to Cass first." Molly understood what the sad smile meant so she didn't question her.

"Okay, let's go to my room." Cassandra said and they both went upstairs.

"I didn't know you were friends." George said to Tonks as they left.

"Friends? We're sisters." Tonks replied.

"So how did you meet?" Fred asked.

"Now that's a story I love to tell." Tonks answered as she sat on the couch and began talking.

* * *

><p>"<strong>Mom, how's dad?<strong>" Juliana asked seriously as her mother closed the door and made the room sound proof. When she turned, her eyes were filled with tears. "**Don't lie, I deserve to know the truth.**"

"**It's getting harder, Juliana. Sometimes he comes home so hurt it takes me hours to heal him.**" Her mother replied as she sat on the bed. Cassandra resisted the urge to cry.

"**I want to see him. I miss him so much.**" She said and her mother smiled a broken smile.

**"I know you do, he misses you too, every day. That's part of what I need to tell you. You'll be staying here for a week, at most. We finally found a house close to Salem, so we're moving there shortly. And your father will be there as much as he can, I promise.**" Juliana sighed, a bit relieved. She almost never saw her father, so spending the rest of the summer on a place where he could actually go was a gift from heaven. "**I will come next monday to pick you up, so have your things ready.**"

"Okay." Was her reply after she leaned down and hugged her mother, who broke down and cried silently on her shoulder.

* * *

><p><strong>If any of you are wondering, the question of Cassandra's father came up, and Juliana's answer was "He travels a lot." That was the first week after the school's end, so Severus was still at Hogwarts, getting his business sorted. But he did live with them. I couldn't fit it on the story but that's how it happened<strong>.


	10. Chapter 10

**Thanks for the follows, review and favorites! I'm glad people like this story.**

**This is by far the longest chapter, but I wasn't going to split it in two parts because the point is that one chapter has to cover Juliana and Severus and the other Cassandra and Fred. **

**The rating of this story won't go up because I couldn't write sex scenes even if my life depended on it, but things will be obviously implied, for example after the line break. **

**This chapter has lots of fluff.**

**As usual, bolded sentences are meant to be on portuguese.**

**Warning: Sirius is strongly antagonized.**

* * *

><p>"Severus..." Juliana said as she traced random patterns with her finger on his bare chest.<p>

"Yeah?" he asked with his eyes closed, with one arm wrapped around her and the other resting behind his head.

"Would you like to spend Christmas break with me on Brazil?" She asked shyly. He opened his eyes immediately and looked at her, surprise written on his face.

"Are you serious?" He asked, sitting on the enormous bed the Room of Requirement had provided for them. She sat up, too.

"Of course I'm serious. I mean, you will need a signed permission but... I mean..." she didn't know how to say _I don't think your father will care what you do as long as you don't go where he is and if to get that he has a to sign a paper, I don't think he will mind, _but she didn't need to, he understood. "I mean if you want to, too. You don't have to come. I just... my mum says she wants to meet you..." She rambled, scared by his silence. His eyes opened wide and she thought she had said something wrong. "Um..." she said with her voice an octave higher, trying to think of something to say.

"Your mum wants to meet me? You have talked to her about me? Us?" He asked with an unreadable expression.

"...yes?" She said quietly and what expected was a lecture about how it was dangerous to write that on a letter but what she got was him on top of her kissing her desperately. She had her eyes opened for a second, surprised by his sudden action, but began kissing him back in no time, wrapping her legs around his waist, bringing him closer. Severus broke the kiss and used his elbows to lift himself a bit from her. _She looks so beautiful, _he tought, with her hair spread out on the pillow, her eyes dark with desire and her ragged breath.

"I love you." It came out from his mouth without warning, and he cursed himself on his head. _How could you blurt out something like that, she's going to run away this time for sure_, he tought. On the contrary, she smiled a surprised smile and pulled him down for another kiss. A few seconds later, she whispered on his ear.

"I love you too."

After another agitated love making session, she spoke again.

"You haven't answered."

"Yes. I'd love to spend Christmas break with you." She squealed with excitement and he smiled lovingly at her.

* * *

><p>"Okay. One more time, this is what we're going to do." Juliana said as she sat on Severus' lap on their secret place on the library.<p>

"We've said it a thousand times already." Severus said poking her side, making her laugh.

"We can't make any mistakes. Just one more time, please. I'll give you a kiss." He raised his eyebrow.

"I don't get a kiss if I say no? Ever again?" He asked bringing his face close to hers. She pulled away and struggled to not smile.

"Never. No more kissing for you."

"Oh no, then I think I must accept." He said, playing along.

"That's what I thought. Okay. First thing. We just go into the train when the opportunity presents itself. It doesn't matter how, it just has to look natural." She looked at him. Despite his unwillingness to go through everything again, he took it very seriously.

"When we arrive to Kings Cross, I will walk into muggle London and I will take a cab. You will take it on the station. We are going to your uncle's cottage. When I get there, I will go inside." She nodded and continued.

"My mother already sent the portkey, I forgot to tell you. Well, I will be there already waiting for you. If everything goes right, we will have to wait probably an hour until it activates, because my uncle said that we should not take any chances. After that... we should be on the sunny, beautiful and warm Brazil. " She smiled and he smiled back before giving her a kiss.

"We should probably get going, it's almost time for dinner." Severus said.

"Oh yes, and I haven't packed yet. I'll see you tomorrow then. Love you." she replied standing up and kissing him before leaving.

He waited some time like they always did and left the library.

* * *

><p>So far, so good. They had boarded the train without any problem and were already halfway there. Nevertheless, Severus couldn't help but still feel nervous. If this worked, he might spend some actual good time, and that meant that he had a voice inside his head constantly repeating '<em>this is too god to be true'<em>.

When they arrived to the station, he catched a glimpse of Juliana getting into a car. Good. That meant she was already on her way. He had grabbed a hold of his trunk and began walking when he suddenly found himself going head first to the ground. He barely had time to turn a little to the side to avoid breaking his head on the floor, which resulted on his shoulder taking all the force of the fall. He gritted his teeth and held it in pain. It was dislocated, for sure.

"Will you ever stop making a fool of yourself, Snivellus?" He heard a mocking voice say. Of course._ I should have known, _he thought. _I would never trip like that own my own. _He got up, grabbed his trunk and began walking the other way. _Today I won't give you the satisfaction. _His arm hurt like hell, but he managed to pretend that nothing was wrong.

Sirius _did not_ like that. Not at all.

"My friend, wait up." He said pressing his hand on his shoulder with so much force that Severus nearly fell on his knees. Sweat was beginning to form on his forehead. He could fix it with a wave of his wand, but right now they were in front of hundreds of muggles, which gave Sirius a perfect opportunity. He couldn't do anything. He_ wouldn't_ do anything, not in front of all these people.

"Sirius, what are you doing? Let's go." He heard Lupin say, annoyed.

"I'm just saying goodbye to my friend here Remus." He replied with fake kindness on his voice. "It is not a common day when he leaves the castle for a holiday..." He lowered his voice. "He's probably going to spend Christmas with all his Death Eater friends, exchanging gifts, killing people for fun..."

"Yes, I am actually." Severus replied in a dangerous tone. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to say hello to your entire family for you." Sirius eyes flashed dangerously and he sneered at him.

"You are hilarious." He said in a normal tone again and punched him on his injured shoulder with great strength. To anyone who was casually walking by, that would have seemed a friendly gesture, but Severus felt like he was being burned alive. His face was completely soaked on sweat now, and his hair was sticking on his face.

"Have a good holiday." Sirius said with malice and left.

Severus walked with difficulty a few blocks until he found a dark alley. He made sure no one was watching and put his shoulder back on place. This hurt even more than before and this time he allowed himself to kneel in pain. When he regained his breath, he tried to move his arm to discover that it still hurt. Not as much as before, obviously, but the pain was considerable.

He walked some more until he found a cab and after he told the driver the address, allowed himself to lay back on his seat and relax for a while.

* * *

><p>He paid the driver and got out of the car. The cottage was small and had a wooden fence with a small gate on the front. He looked at it for a few seconds while the cab left. Suddenly, the door opened and a smiling Juliana appeared on the doorstep. She ran outside to meet him, but stopped suddenly and the smile on her face vanished. She looked at him for a second before hurrying and taking his face on her hands. She was worried, and he didn't know why. <em>Oh, I must look terrible. <em>He thought.

"What happened, are you okay?" She asked him as she hugged him, touching his shoulder. He flinched and she pulled away. "Are you hurt?" She asked, scared.

"I'll tell you inside." He said and she nodded. She held his hand and carried his trunk for him. He let her, right now he was starting to feel very tired.

* * *

><p>"THAT SON OF A BITCH! I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!" Juliana screamed, enraged. She started to look for something on her bag, muttering under her breath. Severus was angry too, but seeing getting worried for him and angry at someone because they hurt him felt... kind of nice. It looked like she found what she was looking for, because she walked to him with a small bottle on her hands. She handed it to him and he took it without asking. If he was in better conditions he would have taken a potion of his own, but he didn't even think about it. She sat beside him on the couch and moved him so his head was resting on her lap. She began running her hands on his hair, calming him down. She was still pissed, though, and was killing Sirius Black over and over again on her mind.<p>

"Do you want to take a bath? We still have to wait 45 minutes and this house has a _very_ good looking bathtub." She asked after a while. He opened one eye and smirked.

"Is that an invitation?" He asked.

"Could be." She replied with a smile that mirrored his own.

* * *

><p>"I don't have summer clothes." Severus said to Juliana.<p>

"Oh, no! What are we going to do?" She said sarcastically. "I wish you were a wizard who could transfigure a pencil into a pair of shorts! I guess we should cancel everything."

He laughed at her and she smiled. She helped him with the clothes and they dressed together. In no time they were ready to go.

"Ready?" She asked. The portkey would be working in ten seconds.

"Ready." He said and they both put their fingers on the broken cup on the table. As soon as they did they felt like they were being pulled from their legs and stretched like a rubber band. In a second felt themselves land in the floor. Severus landed on his back, with Juliana on top of him. He was a bit disoriented at first, but after a few seconds felt her getting off of him and began to open his eyes. What greeted him was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. An enormous beach with crystal blue water and what he tought was the bluest sky in the world. He squinted his eyes a bit because the sun was too bright for him, but other than that everything was perfect. Juliana held his hand and kissed his cheek.

"Welcome to Rio." She said with a smile. "Now let's go before you get sunburnt." They turned and he saw a house a few meters away. He assumed that was where she lived. When they were getting there, a woman who looked to be about forty five years old opened the door and screamed something Severus didn't understand. She was obviously her mother, the resemblance between them could not be missed. Juliana waved excitedly with a smile before she whispered at him.

"They will say is that you are too pale at some point. Don't get offended, you are. It's not a bad thing, they're just not used to see it." He nodded and held her hand tightly. He was absolutely scared. _What if she didn't like him? What if she forbided him to see Juliana again? What if she already had someone in mind for her daughter? Someone from there who was better looking? _

Juliana's mother hugged her daughter and said something he didn't understand again. When she pulled away, she fixed her eyes on him and he swallowed.

"You are Severus!" She said excitedly with a very thick accent. He nodded, nervous. "Don't be shy! Juliana says so much about you I feel I already know you! I'm Isabel, her mother." She came to him and gave him a kiss on each cheek. He looked very surprised.

"That's the custom here, love." Juliana whispered to him, trying hard not to smile at his dumbfounded face.

"Come! We need to introduce you to everybody! Juliana never brings a boyfriend to meet the family." She said with a smile and walked ahead of them.

"You never brought anyone before to meet them?" He asked her.

"No one was special enough." She answered and held his hand again. The corners of his mouth lifted up. "I'm sure all my family is inside... which is more than twenty people, and you will be kissed on your cheeks by every woman on the room. I just thought you should know."

"WHAT?" He said and didn't have time to ask anything else because she opened the door and was greeted by an enormous amount of people on the living room.

"**HELLO!**" They all screamed and Severus took a step back. Juliana gave his hand a firm squeeze and brought him to her side.

Everyone started talking at the same time, making it even harder for him to even catch a word of what they were saying. To his surprise, he heard his name being said quite a lot by all these people.

"**Yes, this is my boyfriend Severus. He's overwhelmed because all of this is new for him. People on England act different, so please don't make him uncomfortable. Also, he only speaks English. Please be nice.**" Juliana said. And with that everyone started introducing themselves to him. Quite a few of them spoke English, and they all told him that they were thrilled to finally meet him. It was hard for him to believe anything of what was happening, but tried to handle the situation the best he could.

After a while Severus began to feel more and more comfortable with the people on the room.

Juliana was looking at him, smiling. He was opening up easily, but then, it wasn't to hard to open up with these people. They were nice and loved making feel people at home. Severus hit it off right away with her uncle Henry, who was American. He was actually her aunt's husband, and was a Potions Master. She was expecting it.

They had dinner outside, and by then he was completely comfortable. He laughed, smiled, and joked without thinking it twice. After dinner, Juliana asked him if he wanted to go for a walk on the beach, and he accepted. They both excused themselves and walked to the water. They were barefoot, so they enjoyed the feeling of the water and wet sand. The moon was up in the sky and the sight of the stars reflexion on the sea was breathtaking. They walked on comfortable silence for a while, until Severus spoke.

"Thank you." He said. Juliana looked at him and smiled. They sat on the sand and she rested her head on his shoulder. "I can't remember the last time I felt like this." He whispered and she hugged him, snuggling closer to his body.

"How?" she asked softly.

"Happy." he replied, turning to look at her. She brought her face closer to his and when they were about to kiss they heard a noise on the trees behind them. Juliana sighed with a smile and pressed her forehead on his for second before turning her head.

"**Come out. We can hear you.**" She said and Severus raised an eyebrow at her. Nothing happened. "**I will tell your mother you were following me again.**" Suddenly the sound was heard again, but this time a little girl appeared. She slowly made her way to where they sat, with a piece of folded paper on her hands. "Severus, this is Teresa, my cousin. She is almost four, and loves following me around." Severus waved his hand awkwardly at her and she looked down, blushing. "**Why did you follow us?**" Teresa said something on her ear and she laughed. "**Okay.**" She replied and looked at him. The little girl handed him the folded piece of paper. "Take it." Juliana said. He took it and opened it. It was a drawing of him and Juliana, holding hands. It had weird colored doodles everywhere, but Severus found himself very touched at the gesture.

"**Thank you**." He said to the little girl like Juliana had taught him to. They heard her name being called, probably by her mother, and she hugged him quickly before running away. "Why did she give me this?" He asked after a while.

"She liked you. She said you were pretty." His eyebrows rose up.

"Pretty?" She rolled her eyes.

"I'm just translating. You know... everyone liked you, actually." He sighed and leaned back into the sand. She did the same.

"That never happened before." He said with a trace of sadness on his voice. She put her hand on his face and turned it so he was now looking at her.

"Maybe because you were never given a chance to be liked." He moved a strand of hair from her face and left his hand there.

"I love you so much." He said.

"**I love you more.**" She replied before kissing him.

* * *

><p>After they got back, most of Juliana's relatives were already gone, and those who weren't were about to leave. When they got inside, Severus asked a question that had been on his mind for a while.<p>

"Where am I sleeping?" Juliana looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"With me, of course. Unless you'd rather sleep somew-" she began to say but he interrupted her.

"With you?" He asked, surprised. "Your mother is okay with this?" _So that's where it comes from, _she tought.

"Sex is not a taboo on my family. As long as we keep it down and are careful, she doesn't mind." Severus mouth fell and his eyes opened wide. He didn't know what to say.

"I feel very uncomfortable right now."

"Okay, you don't have to sleep in my room. I'm sure I can-" She began to say and he interrupted her again.

"That's not what I meant!" She smiled.

"I know, I was teasing you. Come on." She said as her mother entered the house.

"We are going to bed. Goodnight." She said and her mother smiled.

"You better sleep tonight," Isabel said to Severus, "Because I know tomorrow a long day awaits you." By now his face was as red as a tomato, so he just nodded, afraid that his voice might be higher than usual. Juliana smiled and they went up the stairs, Severus trunk floating behind them.

"This is it." She said as she opened the doors of her room. It was small but really nice. The walls were white with baby blue flowers on the middle. She had two more doors inside, one to her closet and the other to her bathroom, he assumed. Her bed was big enough for both of them, and she had a big window with a balcony where you could see the sea. He enjoyed the cold night air and closed his eyes. Juliana appeared on his side and he drapped an arm across her shoulders. She hugged him close and he kissed the top of her head.

"What are we doing tomorrow?" He asked pulling her close and kissing her neck.

"Do you get tanned?" She asked suddenly.

"Tanned? I don't think so. I never went to a place where the sun was strong enough to do it." He answered.

"I don't think so either. You will probably end up all red and in pain. It doesn't matter. And tomorrow we are scuba diving."

"Scuba diving? What's that?" He asked.

"Oh, tomorrow you'll know." She replied playfully.

"Okay." He said and began kissing her. She pulled away, suddenly.

"Wait! I want..." She said going inside and appearing with a camera on her hands. "A picture of you and me kissing."

"What?" He asked surprised.

"Please! Pleaseeeeee." She said, pouting.

"Fine!" He said, laughing. She smiled.

She left it floating on the air and went to stand in front of him. She looked up and locked eyes with him.

"What's wrong?" She asked when he didn't come any closer.

"I don't want to ruin it." He said, embarrassed. She smiled sadly and moved her face closer to his. His hands came up to hold her face in place and slowly placed his lips on top of hers. A sudden light made him pull away from her and she smiled. She took the camera and pulled the picture out.

"How bad is it?" Severus asked, only half joking.

"Perfect." She answered. And kissed him again, this time without any interruption.

* * *

><p>"What the hell is this?" Severus asked, appalled by the garment he was holding on his hand.<p>

"That is a wetsuit. You have to put it on, it protects your skin." Juliana replied from the bathroom.

"I'm not wearing this! It's... tight!" Severus said, frantic. Juliana laughed and came out of the bathroom with hers only pulled up to the waist, leaving her torso naked except for her bikini top.

"That looks nice." Severus said, suddenly. She rolled her eyes and finished putting her wetsuit, turning around so he could zip it up.

"If you think someone will say anything you are totally mistaken. Wearing this is normal, especially if you are scuba diving. You have to wear it." He looked at the piece of clothing on his hand and reluctantly started to put it on. When he finished, he was feeling too self conscious.

"Damn." He heard Juliana say and felt his ass being squeezed before she pressed herself close to him from behind. She put her chin on his shoulder and brought her mouth close to his ear.

"You don't know how good your back looks on this." She whispered huskily and he bit his bottom lip to avoid letting out a loud moan. "Scuba diving will have to wait." She said before pulling him onto the bed with her.

* * *

><p>On the days before Christmas, Severus had a wonderful time. Juliana's family made him feel like he was one of them, something he'd never felt before. During his time in Rio he let himself be something he'd never been. <em>An open person<em>. He wasn't afraid to show his feelings, he didn't think that if he smiled people would consider him weak, he felt accepted.

On the night of Christmas Eve, Severus was on the living room of the house, looking at the pictures displayed on the wall. Many of them consisted of a younger Juliana with a man he assumed was her father, because they shared many similarities. She looked happy in every single one of them.

"Severus! There you are." She said appearing on the doorway and walked to where he was. She looked at the pictures with a smile.

"Do you miss him?" He asked and she sighed.

"Yeah, mostly on occasions like this." He intertwined his fingers with hers and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "He would've loved you, you know." She said matter of factly.

"If you say so..." He answered, unsure.

"He was fascinated by the Dark Arts too." He looked at her, surprised. "He always said that people were mostly scared of the name. He said that you just needed to understand them to love them. He was specialized on healing severe injuries made by dark magic and was starting to work on how to revert the insanity created by prolonged torture. He didn't get to finish it, as you can imagine."

"Can I ask how he died?" She nodded.

"Car accident." He wasn't going to say it out loud, but he was a bit disappointed. He was expecting something a little more... astonishing and a little less, well, _muggle._

"A little disappointed, I see." She said, not harshly. He blushed and looked tormented. "Don't worry about it. They took him to the hospital but there was nothing to be done. His organs were so compromised that not even magic could save him. It was quite ironic." Severus hugged her and she rested her head on his chest.

"I'm so sorry."

"We got to say goodbye, my mother and I. It was short and painful, but it was better than nothing. I always remember him on his best." He leaned down and softly kissed her.

"I love you." He said.

"I love you too." She hugged him one more time and then brightened again. "We need to prepare the table, let's go."

The meal was gigantic. All the people that greeted him on his first day were back, and as warm and nice as then. When it was finally Christmas, everyone hugged and kissed each other. Severus had never been part of something like that, and didn't know very well how to react. Thankfully, Juliana was there to save him.

"Let's go outside." She said. He nodded and they walked to the door, when they were stopped by Teresa.

"**Can I come?**" She asked looking up at them. Juliana laughed.

"She wants to come." She said to Severus. He just raised an eyebrow and shrugged his shoulders. Juliana nodded to the girl and held her hand out for Teresa to take. She shook her head and raised her arms.

"**You want me to pick you up? Jesus Christ, you are getting too old for this.**" She said and leaned down, but Teresa shook her head again and moved so her arms were pointing at Severus. Juliana laughed loudly. "Oh my God! She wants _you_ to pick her up!" She said to Severus, who opened his eyes wide. "If you don't she'll cry, believe me." He awkwardly picked up the kid, who instantly laid her head on his shoulder and put her arms around his neck. Juliana tried hard to not laugh.

"She's in love with you." Juliana said after a while of walking on the beach. "And she is also asleep." Severus looked down to see that Teresa was indeed sleeping with her head resting on his chest.

"You look so cute. I wish I'd brought my camera." She said and he narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh wait, I did." She said pulling her camera out, taking a picture before he could react. "I love it!" She said when the image appeared. Severus looked at it and concluded that yes,_ it could be categorized as cute_. But he _was not _going to say that out loud.

"Merry Christmas, Severus." She said, leaning to kiss him without waking the girl up.

"Merry Christmas, love."

* * *

><p>New Year was similar to Christmas, except there was an amazing fireworks display, and Juliana kissed him hard on the mouth went the countdown reached zero.<p>

"**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**" Everyone screamed at the same time.

However, later that night, when he and Juliana were already on bed, he couldn't help but feel sad. She noticed instantly.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"It's our last day here. I will miss this." He replied. She frowned sadly and hugged him close. She began to run her fingers through his hair, like she knew he loved.

"We are going to keep doing this, Severus. This was just the beginning." He looked at her with a small smile and kissed her briefly.

"Your hair got really dry." She said after a while. "Must've been the sea water."

"Do you like it better when it's not greasy and gross?" He asked her, playfully. He used to feel insecure about it when he was with her, but he learned that she didn't really care.

"Well, even though I like your hair as it is... this style kind of make you look hotter." He laughed.

"Really?" She nodded and laughed too.

"Super hot." He kissed her one more time and they both fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The next morning Severus was surprised to find himself alone in bed. Normally Juliana woke up after him. He went to check on the bathroom, but it was empty. He got dressed and decided to look for her downstairs.<p>

What he found there was something he could not believe. A loud scream of _Surprise! _was heard and he was greeted by a big poster hanging on the wall that said _"HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY SEVERUS", _and a big cake on the table that said the same. He was actually happy that Juliana's entire family wasn't there to greet him, instead there was only her, her mother, her aunt with her husband Henry, and little Teresa.

He realized he hadn't said anything and tried to speak but no words could come out of his mouth. Juliana noticed and walked to him. She gave him a peck on the lips and held his hand.

"You know we leave tomorrow, so this was our last chance to celebrate your birthday properly. I thought that we should do this and surprise you." She said with a smile, leading him to the table, where the cake was.

"I..." he struggled to speak so she held his hand tighter. "I really don't know what to say. Thank you so much, no one ever did something like this for me." Just as he said this, he felt something poking his leg. When he looked down, he realized that something was actually a _someone, _and that someone was Teresa.

She motioned him to come down and he kneeled. She grabbed his hand and pulled something from her pocket. It was a bracelet, and it looked like she made it herself.

"**Happy birthday.**" She said as put it on his hand before hugging him. At first he didn't know what to do, but after a second he hugged her back. He saw a bright light and when he looked up, Juliana was smiling wide with her camera on her hands.

"Can you tell her I loved it?" She nodded and leaned down to speak to Teresa.

"**Severus says he loves it, and thank you.**" The girl beamed at him and ran away.

"Head over heels in love with you." Juliana said with a smile and he rolled his eyes.

After that, they sang to him rather loudly and out of key, making him feel embarrassed and enjoying every second of it. They ate the cake, that was delicious, laughed and talked a lot.

Severus had a great time, and before Juliana fell asleep, he spoke to her.

"Juliana." He whispered. She had her back pressed against his chest, so she turned around to see his face.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"I've been thinking how to say this without sounding stupid so I will just say it all at once." She motioned him to go on. "I wanted to thank you for doing all of this for me. I know I have a hard time showing you how I feel but you need to know that I love you, and that I have _never _the way I feel about you for anyone else." She looked at him surprised. She knew what this meant.

"Are you sure?" She said, her voice creaking. He nodded, serious.

"I love you." He replied. She kissed him deeply and slowly for a long time.

"I love you too."

* * *

><p>The goodbye was a warm one, with Isabel telling him how much she loved to meet him and how much she expected him to come back; with Teresa trying to hide her tears, which earned her a kiss on the cheek by Severus that made her smile, and her parents telling him it had been a pleasure to know him.<p>

Before they realized they were already back on the cottage. It was very cold, and reality hit Severus on the face like a ton of bricks. The past two weeks had been a gift from heaven, but now everything would be the same again. As usual, Juliana noticed the change on his mood. She walked to him and held him close.

"_We will_ be back." She said, reassuringly. He just smiled sadly and kissed her hair. "Now, how about a bath? It _definitely_ is an invitation."

* * *

><p>"Okay." Juliana said as she put her coat on. "I will call a two cabs. I will get down on Kings Cross and you where you want, just make sure it's a wizard free place." He nodded and she grabbed the phone.<p>

Twenty minutes later, two cars where waiting for them outside.

"I'll see you soon. I love you." She said kissing him with all she had before opening the door and leaving. He closed it and made his way to the car.

* * *

><p>This time he didn't have the bad luck to see Black, and boarded the train with no problems. He found an empty compartment and sat with a sigh. Hours later, he was joined by someone.<p>

"Avery." He said with a nod.

"Severus." He said suspiciously. "Have you been at the sun? You don't look so pale." Severus inner alarms went off immediately, but his face did not betray him.

"I had work to do this holiday." He said without implying anything, but Avery, being the Dark Lord lover he was, instantly thought he was talking about Voldemort.

"I understand. I had work to do too." He said with an evil smile. He was silent for a while. "You already know what you are doing after school, right Severus? I mean... potions are always needed, and with a skill like yours... Many doors could be opened if you knew the right people to talk to. I, myself, have many connections." Severus narrowed his eyes at him.

"What are you looking for, Avery?" He asked impatient, but carefully.

"We both know the answer to that question. I know you are good, I can imagine how pleased _he _would be if I brought to him someone as skilled as you to serve his cause." The hair on Severus' neck stood up. "You do know where your loyalties lay, don't you, Severus? It would be a shame for the Slytherin house if someone betrayed us, and everyone knows you had quite the relationship with that filthy mudblood before. We wouldn't want you to make any mistakes like that again, wouldn't we?" He asked, playing with the wand on his hands. Severus jaw was set, but he knew he couldn't say anything. Evil things were said about Avery and about his father, and all of them were true. If he decided to murder Severus right there, he was probably going to get away with it. So he just nodded and answered with the truth.

"I always know where my loyalties lay."

* * *

><p>Severus was having a tough week. Exams were coming up and both he and Juliana were studying hard, so they didn't see each other as much as they wanted to.<p>

The night before his birthday he went to bed early. He was moody and didn't want to be disturbed. No one but Juliana (and _her_) knew it was his birthday, and even if they did, they wouldn't even bother to say anything to him.

He fell asleep remembering the surprise party Juliana had given him, wishing she was there to keep him company.

At some point during the night, he turned on his bed only to be awoken by something hard on his back. He rose immediately and lit up the bed with his wand. He didn't care about anyone seeing, his drapes where always closed and had a charm on them.

On his bed was a box with a small envelope on top that read _Severus. _He recognized the handwriting in a second. He opened it to find a little letter inside.

_I hope you like it. Don't worry about anyone seeing it, it's heavily enchanted, like this letter. Don't destroy it. _

_Happy birthday_

_I love you more_

_J._

He opened the box to find a rather fat brown photo album, with an _S_ and a _J_ written on silver letters. He already knew what was inside, but that didn't keep him from being surprised.

There were so many pictures he didn't even know she had taken, and they were all amazing. This was the best gift she could give him. This was a way to make him see that everything that had happened wasn't a dream. The good memories were all real.

_No... I love you more._ He thought.

* * *

><p><strong>Shit is about to hit the fan.<strong>

**Avery is going to have an important role on that and on the story.**


	11. Chapter 11

Voices and laughs could be heard from where Cassandra and Juliana were, coming down the stairs.

"I wish I could have seen that." They heard one of the twins say.

"You don't have to. She has pictures. _Hundreds_ of pictures." Tonks said laughing.

"What are you talking about?" Cassandra said as she sat on the couch. Her mother went to the kitchen, where Molly was waiting for her with a cup of tea.

"About your crush on Tonks." George said with a smile on his voice.

"My crush on Tonks?!" Cassandra said, in mock indignation. "I did not have a crush on Tonks!" She paused and lifted her chin, proudly. "It was much more than that. It was a fully developed obsession."

"Do you have the pictures?" Tonks asked, excited.

"I always do." She replied, a box appearing on her hands. "Knock yourselves out." She said as she took the lid off and put it on the table.

In every picture Tonks was, Cassandra appeared too. Even if she was on the background, she was there. On most of them she was looking up at her with a dreamy look on her face.

"I remember wishing my hair could change colors. I used to think that was the coolest thing you could do." She said with a nostalgic smile as she looked at the photographs.

"What is it now?" Tonks asked.

"Right now I think the coolest thing you do is kick asses right and left." She replied with a grin. Tonks smiled smugly.

"Oh my, you were fearless." Ginny said jokingly, holding a picture where Cassandra was holding on her hand an enormous and horrible spider, with a smile that had two teeth missing.

"Oh my God! Carlos!" She said taking the picture from her hand.

"Carlos? Who's Carlos?" Fred asked, looking at her with a frown.

"Carlos was my pet spider. I found him on the jungle and I wanted to keep him so bad that my mother made his venom useless and let me keep him. I put him on a closed box and he was dead the next day. I cried." Fred really didn't know what to answer to that so he just remained silent.

"You kept a spider as a pet? Are you mental?" Ron asked, entering the room.

"Not everyone is scared of spiders, Ron." George and Fred said at the same time, rolling their eyes.

"I wouldn't be scared if it wasn't for you!" He retorted, angrily.

"Could you let it go..." Fred began.

"The past is in the past." George finished.

"That's very convenient for you isn't it, If y-" Ginny cut him off.

"No one wants to hear you argue, so if you could shut up it would be very nice." Ron narrowed his eyes but kept quiet. Before the silence got awkward, Juliana appeared on the room.

"I'm leaving," she said to Cassandra. "I'll be back on Monday morning. Make sure you have everything ready." She nodded and her mother kissed her head and hugged her. She said goodbye to everyone else in the room and left.

After she was gone Molly announced that dinner was ready. Tonks put the pictures back on the box and closed it. When everyone was on their seats, she spoke.

"I didn't think you were leaving so soon." She said to Cassandra.

"Leaving? Where are you leaving?" Fred asked, surprised.

"To Salem. My mother found a house and we are moving so we can spend the rest of the summer getting used to the place. That's where I will be living for a year, after all."

"Students don't live on the school?" Ginny asked.

"There are dormitories for those who are not from the city. But if you do live there, at the end of the day you just go home." She explained.

"I thought you were going as an exchange student? Shouldn't you be staying with the family of the girl that's travelling to Brazil?" Molly asked.

"Not really... you can choose the kind of program you are going to take part in. You can go to a school and have them send someone, you can go alone, they can send someone alone, you can let a foreign student live with you, they can live on their own... there are lots of options. When my mother travelled to Hogwarts they sent someone who didn't stay with her family. Also, she traveled to Brazil for the holidays. And it's actually a boy."

"I beg your pardon?" Molly asked, confused.

"It's a boy from Salem, not a girl." She replied.

"But it's a Witches Institute." Ginny said.

"No, the name of the institute is _Salem Witches_. It just gets confused with Salem, _Witches Institute._ It's for both boys and girls." She clarified.

"Oh..." Fred said, joining the conversation. "Are you excited?"

"Yeah, absolutely. It's just that as much as I'm excited I'm worried about the times that are ahead of us. I mean... when I feel happy about something I just can't help to think I shouldn't, because of how messed up everything is now. It's stupid, I know." She finished looking down at her plate, embarrassed.

"It's not stupid." Hermione said, reassuringly.

"No, it's not." Fred agreed. "But you can't live feeling guilty about getting excited about stuff. The times ahead of us should be a reason for you to be as happy as you can."

"That was deep." George said with a frown.

"Yeah..." Fred replied.

Everyone was silent for the rest of the meal, Fred's words still echoing on their minds.

* * *

><p>Later that night, when everyone had already went to bed, Fred had a nightmare. He woke up covered in sweat, gasping. He quickly looked at the bed beside his, searching for his brother. George was there, sleeping peacefully. Only then he allowed himself to relax a bit. He rubbed his eyes and sat on his bed, enjoying the cold feeling of the floor on his feet. He got up and quietly left the room.<p>

Normally when he had a nightmare as bad as that one, a cup of tea and some time to think was the only thing that calmed him down completely and allowed him to go back to bed.

He slowly made his way downstairs and was slightly surprised to find Cassandra sitting at the table. She looked oblivious to the world, with a flame about the size of a fist floating in front of her, providing enough light to see most of the kitchen. In front of her was a glass of untouched water, that apparently was the focus of her attention. Except it wasn't, because it was plain to see that her mind was miles away.

It was a creak on the floor that took her out of her trance. She tensed and looked up immediately, and relaxed just as fast when she saw it was him. She squinted her eyes to get a better look, and realized something was wrong. She didn't say anything, though. She just let him make himself a cup of tea, following his every move with her eyes, until he sat in front of her.

"How bad was it? Judging from how pale you look and the hair sticking to your face because of the sweat, I assume _very bad._" She didn't say the word _nightmare _at any point in her sentence, but it wasn't necessary. It was obvious she was talking about that. For a second, Fred felt the need to lie and joke about it, like he normally did about things. But he was still shaken up, and talking about things usually helped... right?

"Worse." Taking a large gulp of his tea before rubbing his forehead. "They never feel this real. It's like I can't breathe and it feels like it's never going to end." She sighed.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." He looked at her.

"Did you have one too?" He asked.

"No... I mean, I have, just not tonight. I've been thinking about what you said at dinner, actually." She replied.

"About enjoying happiness?"

"Exactly. The thought hasn't left my mind since. You've rooted it on my brain. And since you're here, I'd like to thank you. It has opened my mind." She smiled and he smiled back.

"Yeah, it was nothing." He said shrugging and finishing his tea. _It wasn't, _he tought he heard her say under her breath_. _"So... you're leaving?" He said, feigning disinterest, as if to make casual conversation.

"I am, next Monday." She answered, touching the rim of her glass while looking at it attentively.

"Don't you think it's a bit soon? I mean you only got here a couple days ago." He said, this time his interest showing off clearly on his voice. She looked up at him, noticing this change of tone.

"I never intended to stay here for long. We needed to tell you about my mother and me, and she thought it was a good idea that I stopped being a total stranger. So instead of staying in Brazil while she was in the States looking for a house, she made an arrangement so I could stay here and get to know everyone, even if it was just for a short time." She explained. He nodded once, absent-mindedly. "Did I sound arrogant? Like I didn't want to get to know you? Because that's not the case. I wish I could get to know you better." She rambled. He smiled.

"No, I understood, don't worry." He said. She sighed, relieved. They both stayed silent for a while, and Cassandra finally took a drink from her water. Finally, Fred spoke again. "Can I sent letters to you?" He said, not very clearly.

"Sorry, what?" She asked, frowning in confusion.

"Can we mail each other? I mean... when you're on Salem. You said you'd like to get to know each other better..." This time he rambled, and blushed. She brightened and he smiled.

"I'd love to." She replied but then frowned. "But you use owls to deliver your mail."

"Yeah... so?" He asked, confused.

"I am not letting an owl fly from Scotland to Massachusetts. That's mental." She said, appalled.

"Oh... I hadn't tought about that." He said. "But your mum used to send letters to Tonks from Brazil, didn't she?" He asked.

"No, she gave the letters to my father and he made sure an owl delivered them to Tonks." She clarified. There was silence for a while.

"I would really love to keep on touch with you..." Fred said, thinking about a solution.

"Well we could..." She began to say but then thought better of it. "No, forget about it."

"What?" He asked, interested. "Come on. Say it." He insisted.

"No, forget it, really. You wouldn't even think about it. It's too crazy, even for you, lunatic." She said with a smile, taunting him.

"Ha. Ha. Now you have to tell me." Pause. "Please."

"Well, I will see my father, and you will see my father..." She began. His eyes widened immediately and his mouth opened.

"I don't... I can't... I just... We can't. No. He'd kill me." He said shaking his head with a frown. "You're right, that's too crazy, even for me." She rolled her eyes.

"I thought the famous Weasley Twins were all Gryffindor bravery and that. Apparently not." She said, standing up and starting to walk away, her flame following her. She had to bit her lip to avoid laughing. He stood up, too, and stopped her, grabbing her arm gently.

"We are!" He yelled and shut up quickly, hoping nobody had heard him. "We are!" He said again, this time whispering. "But that's just going way too far. He would kill me, Cassie. I mean it. You don't k-" He started to say but stopped when he realized how stupid saying _You don't know him like I do _would sound to his daughter, who _clearly_ knew him better than he did.

"Can you please trust me? He would do this for us." She said, exasperated. "_He is good_. And he loves me. And he never said anything about any of my friends. No matter how crazy they were. _I am_ up for being your friend, are_ you_ up for being mine?" She asked, hopefully. He sighed.

"Even if I have to live the most awkward moments of my life, yes. I am up for it."

* * *

><p><strong>Ohhh... the beginning. I just love them.<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

**So I just wanted to say that I've made some small changes to most of the previous chapters, if you want to check it out. Nothing too big. Also I wanted to finally thank all the people that followed this story, put it on their favorites, and reviewed. Specially **_Edwina B. Karch_**, who left such a nice review.**

**So thank you to **_DarkLight2589, DefyGravityByLettingItGo, Edwina B. Karch, Extop13, FonzFan, HetalianLover365, Satine Gold, .Uchiha, TabbyLynne, YourNotGonnaChangeMe, ZiggaZigAhh, blueeyedgirl6449, .kawaii, dragoon109, fisherlinda53, kaykay25, korppi76, lalasagwania, readingaddict24, romana45, EmiSemi, Jovie Black _**and**_ witch71. _

**If you want to review your thoughts on this story, you are more than welcome to do it.**

* * *

><p>January was gone way too fast, and before they knew, the year was halfway through March and N.E.W.T.S. were just around the corner. Juliana did not have as many subjects as Severus did, but even without having her O.W.L.S she was allowed to take the tests. They studied together four times a week, and Juliana was having a hard time. The school had provided her with a wand, because she needed one for Charms and Transfiguration, mostly. She was told she could use it for D.A.D.A., but she was also allowed to use her own methods for that, because nonverbal and wandless magic were considered a high and relevant level of ability to use in defense.<p>

With Herbology and Potions she didn't have any problems. History of Magic was a subject that she really liked, even if the professor was boring and it had more theory than any other subject. But it wasn't more than that, she just had to sit with the book in front of her and read a lot.

But when she had to use a wand she just couldn't do it. Either she ended up blowing everything up or it didn't work. She was studying extra hard for those two subjects, and _slowly_ was becoming better, but she had a lot to practice still. In Brazil she didn't have anything like Charms or Transfiguration, so she was going to have an exam with expert students in two subjects she had just learned. She was going to aim for an _Acceptable_ on both, but her gut told her she was going to get either a _Poor_ or a _Dreadful_. She hoped the latter wasn't a real option, but she really was expecting the worst.

"Are you leaving for Easter?" Severus asked one day while she was trying to turn vinegar into wine, which wasn't working and was getting her very irritated.

"Not likely. I still have too much to learn." She replied, frowning at the cup in front of her. He nodded and looked at her.

"You can't hold your wand so tightly, and your posture is too stiff. As your frustration increases, the chances of getting it right decrease. Here." He said and got up from his chair, walking to place himself behind her. He put his hands on her shoulders. "Relax." He whispered on her ear and she felt herself calm down immediately, leaning back into him. He grabbed her forearm and guided her hand so it was pointing at the cup. "Loosen your hold on the wand." She did. "Okay, now concentrate. What you want has to be clear on your mind. Breathe. Now, try." She said the spell and was surprised to see the color of the liquid turn red.

"Oh my God." She said, amazed. "I did it!" She turned her face and kissed him briefly on the lips. She walked to the table and picked the cup, smelling it. She made a face. "Well, I successfully made wine vinegar... but I guess that's good enough for today." She said with a smile.

He kissed her one more time and they both started to put their things away.

"Well, tomorrow I'm going to Hogsmeade, so I will see you after dinner." He nodded and they kissed again, for a longer time. Severus was the first one to leave this time, and she waited a few minutes before leaving too.

* * *

><p>Juliana spent a nice day with Amanda on Hogsmeade. The weather was getting warmer, and the snow was almost completely gone. After buying tons of candy and some books, they settled for a butterbeer on the Three Broomsticks, before going back to the school.<p>

"You really are a lone wolf." Amanda said after taking a sip of her drink. Juliana raised her eyebrows.

"Uh?" She asked, confused.

"You love to be alone. You spend so much time on the library than anyone else, I think. I don't even know how you can take being on that place for so long." She said, frowning. _Well, I'm not alone, that's how I can take it. _She wanted to say.

"Oh, I just love to learn about this place." She half-lied. She did love learning about the way they used magic and Hogwarts history, but that wasn't the reason she spent so much time on the library. "Everything is so different here, I want to get to know all I can before I leave." Amanda nodded in understanding.

"We should get going, I'm supposed to meet Peter on the Great Hall at five." Juliana looked at her watch and frowned. She was already ten minutes late.

"Um... Amanda... it's already ten past five." She said carefully. Amanda's eyes widened instantly.

"WHAT? OH NO! We really need to leave." She said grabbing her things at record speed.

"I... really need to pee." Juliana said apologetically. "You can go, I'll catch up."

"No... no. I'll wait. Hurry." Amanda replied, getting nervous. She had been dating Peter for about two weeks, and being late was something she absolutely hated. She didn't want to give him a wrong impression.

"Really, go. It's not like I can get lost, I'll walk to the castle on my own." She said, insisting. She hated doing things in a hurry. Amanda hesitated for a second but quickly thanked her and left almost running from the place.

Juliana calmly picked her bags and made her way to the bathroom. She washed her hands afterwards, looked at herself in the mirror, and exited the pub.

She was alone walking on the path that led to Hogwarts when she heard her name being called. When she turned around she couldn't help but roll her eyes and keep walking.

About twenty feet behind her, walking unsteadily was Sirius Black. When he saw her walking faster, he hurried his steps.

"Julianaaaaaa..." she heard again, this time much more closer. She turned, already angry.

"What the hell do you want?" She asked, and took a step back when she smelled the stench of alcohol on him.

"Oh, don't get so worked up." He said drunkenly, popping the _p _at the end of his sentence.

"Go away Sirius, you reek of firewhiskey." She said, disgusted, and turned to leave when his hand on her arm stopped her. She pulled away immediately. "Don't touch me." She told him, anger clear on her voice.

"Oh, come on Juli... you know you want this." He said with a smile, pointing at himself. He tried to grab her shoulders and come closer to kiss her, but what he got was a strong fist connecting to his nose. His eyes watered and he felt warm liquid coming out, before feeling the taste of blood on his mouth. The blow was so hard that he nearly fell back, and it served to sober him a bit.

"Why the hell did you do that for?" He asked, his hand on his face, looking down at the blood that was starting to drip to the floor. When he looked up, he actually took a step back. The look on her face was one of _pure hatred. _He had only seen another person look at him that way on his life, and she was dating him.

"I'm sorry." She said lowly, her words filled with sarcasm, and he wished she was screaming at him, because he knew that tone was _much more dangerous_. "Was I supposed to punch you after you raped me and finally realized that **I. Did Not. Want it**?" He took another step back. _I wasn't going to rape her, what does she think I am?_ "I want you away from me. I can't stand being more than five minutes in the same room as you. I don't know what you think of the girls that surround you, but believe me, not all women are willing to take off their panties whenever you ask. If I say no, it doesn't mean I'm playing hard to get. It means that **I DON'T WANT TO. **But what can you know, you could try to kill someone and get away with it. Wait... _you already did_." She finished, her eyes narrowed and her teeth clenched in anger. She turned and started to walk away, but he spoke again.

"Why him? What could possibly make you want to be with Severus Snape of all people?" He asked with no emotion on his voice. Before he could prevent it, another fist made contact with his face, this time on his right eye.

"We told you to shut up." She said, looking around to see if someone was around. She didn't see anyone.

"Why? The world should know that you are Hogwarts happiest couple." He said, his voice filled with malice and resentment.

She grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him up. Their faces where inches apart.

"Listen to me, idiot, and listen carefully. Do not try me. Or I swear on my life that I will not only destroy you, I will also destroy everyone you love." She moved her face so her mouth was on his ear. "How would Remus feel if everyone knew he is a werewolf?" He pushed her back and looked at her with scared wide eyes. "That's what I thought." She said before turning for the last time and finally walking to the school without being stopped.

Not even in her wildest dreams Juliana would consider to tell anyone about Remus or destroying Sirius life along with the lives of everyone he loved. But she needed him to remain silent, and with someone so unpredictable, threats were the only thing she could think of that actually worked. She wished she didn't have to do it, but she was sure that if she didn't he was going to talk. And talking meant someone was going to die.

When she was finally out of sight, Sirius made his own way to the castle, completely sober by now.

* * *

><p>What he didn't know, and what Juliana hadn't noticed either, was that there was someone standing not too far away that listened attentively to their whole conversation.<p>

"This is just great." Avery said to himself, an evil smile starting to form on his mouth.


	13. Chapter 13

The days passed and suddenly it was Monday morning, and Cassandra was already waiting for her mother. It was early, but everyone was awake to say goodbye.

"Before I go, there is something important I need to tell you." Cassandra began. All the people in the room went silent and waited for her to speak. "I think you've noticed that Harry is not aware of this situation. That's how it has to remain. He can't know about me or my mother by any chance."

"It's not like we can tell him, anyway." Ron said, frowning.

"I know you can't tell him, that's not why I'm saying this. I want you to understand why. You are probably aware that Harry has a connection with Lord Voldemort. I don't know what are the limits of this connection, but there is a chance that it can allow him to access Harry's mind. If this happens and Harry knew about us, it would mean that Voldemort would know too. And if he knows, we're dead. That is the only reason, I know you are not going to like keeping a secret like this from him, but it's necessary." She finished, her face serious.

"You're right. It's for the greater good." Said Hermione nodding, as if she was trying to convince herself too. The other's nodded too, but Sirius didn't look too pleased at this request. Cassandra noticed but kept quiet, she didn't want to cause unnecessary tension.

Just a few seconds later they heard footsteps and Juliana appeared in the room. She had noticeable bags under her eyes, and even if she was trying to hide it behind a bright smile, it was clear that something was very wrong.

"Shit." Cassandra said very lowly closing her eyes and looking down. She knew what that appearance meant.

"Hey!" She said walking to her daughter. "Everything ready?" Cassandra nodded and forced a smile. "Well, we better get going. The portkey will activate in about fifteen minutes." She said and walked to the adults while Cassie said goodbye to the others.

"How bad?" Molly said, serious. Arthur and Sirius looked at Juliana, awaiting an answer.

"Do you really need to ask?" She replied, in a monotonous voice. That meant _worse than you think_.

"Wasn't he his favourite?" Sirius said, a slight hint of sarcasm on his tone. And by the look on his face after he said it, it wasn't supposed to be said out loud. Molly and Arthur opened their eyes wide and looked at him.

"I'm sorry?" Juliana asked, anger raging inside her. He muttered a low _fuck _and closed his eyes. "Sirius, a word, please." She said, her words laced with venom, leading him to the kitchen. The kids were still oblivious to what was happening.

He followed her and she closed the door, making the room sound proof.

"Why do you always have to do something like this!" She asked, exasperated.

"Sorry for saying what's on my mind when I am IN MY HOUSE." He replied, stubbornly.

"I know I should not bother to elaborate an argument just to tell you how wrong you are because every time I talk about Severus what I say goes in one ear and out the other" He rolled his eyes. "But I will ask you nicely to stop making those kind of comments when you know what's on stake for him every day. You are an adult now, Sirius. Act like one for once in your life."

"Act like an adult? You are telling **me **to act like an adult? Why don't you tell your husband that!? He's the one who terrorizes Harry every day just because he exists. And don't tell me about all this cover crap because he does not have to treat him like he's the most worthless piece of garbage." He retorted, angrily.

"You know why he does the things he does and what is going on inside him. You just choose not to see it. I know what he is doing is not nice, and I am trying to help him make it a little better. But it takes time." She sighed. "Sirius, tell me what do you see when you look at Harry." He looked away, refusing to answer. "What. Do. You. See?" She asked again.

"James." He replied.

"And?"

"Lily." He said, running a hand through his hair. "He has Lily's eyes." He finished.

"And you see the great times you had together. But you can't help to see, every time you look into his face or his glasses, or that hair, that James is dead. And when you look into his eyes, that Lily is dead too. But that gets lost on the overflow of good memories. Severus doesn't have good memories. Now you guess what he sees when he looks at Harry's eyes." He wasn't looking at her. She rubbed her eyes. "Show him some respect. You owe him at least that." She finished before getting up and going to the door. Sirius voice stopped her when she was about to open it.

"Juliana, he hates Harry. And he's just an innocent kid. That's the kind of man you married." She let out a dry laugh. Of course he was going to ignore everything she had said, she was expecting that.

"Here we go again..." She said, rubbing her eyes.

"Why can't you see it, Juliana!? He's not good for you!" He screamed.

"Oh, and you are?" She asked, raising her eyebrows. He stayed silent before sitting on a chair and resting his elbows on the table.

"You know I was in love with you." She made a disgusted face and looked at him.

"You_ were not_ in love with me, Sirius. I don't think you are capable of being in love with someone who's not yourself. You wanted me because I was that one person you couldn't have. You wanted me because I was in love with Severus, and taking me away from him would have been the ultimate irony. It was me, but it could've been anyone else." She sighed, her lack of sleep hitting her full force now. She opened the door and exited the room, leaving him behind.

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><p>Cassandra saw Sirius and her mother exit the room and knew things were not gonna be good, but she didn't have time to worry.<p>

"It was a pleasure to meet you." Hermione said with a smile. "I hope we meet again in better circumstances." Cassie nodded.

"It was nice having another girl here for a while... I wish you could have stayed longer." Ginny said and hugged her briefly.

"You're nothing like your father so... cool." Ron said, awkwardly. She just looked at him and mouthed _okay..., _before Fred and George came on either sides of her and hugged her so tightly she stopped breathing.

"We'll miss you!" They said, fake crying.

"All those good times we had together!" George said, dramatically.

"We will never forget them!" Fred screamed directly on her ear.

"I... can't... breathe..." She said, trying to get out of the embrace.

"What? That you'll miss us so much you wish this hug was eternal?" George said, smiling.

She coughed and they both released her, but not before planting two loud and extremely wet kisses on her cheeks. She took a large gulp of air before making a grossed out face.

"DISGUSTING." She said, cleaning her cheeks with the ends of her hoodie. "Pigs." They both bowed and she rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile. In that moment they heard the door of the kitchen being opened, and they all looked to see Juliana coming out with a frown and her jaw clenched. It only lasted a second, but everyone saw it. She smiled and her frown disappeared, but there was something about her that said that she was still angry.

"Are you ready?" She asked her daughter while looking at her watch. "The portkey will be ready in five minutes." She nodded and Fred used the seconds he had while everyone was paying attention to Juliana to whisper on Cassandra's ear.

"Write first." She looked at him with a smile on her lips and nodded briefly.

They left the house and walked to an alley. They touched the portkey and were gone in a second.


	14. Chapter 14

**Thanks to **_readingaddict24 _**for the review and thanks to **_ChelseaLouisePowell_** for the follow and favorite.**

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><p>Juliana was playing absentmindedly with the arm Severus had draped across her middle, while he was kissing her neck softly.<p>

They were on the Room of Requirement again, this time only a big bed and a few candles adorning the room.

"I've made some progress with my Patronus." She said after a while. He just hummed in response, signaling her to go on. "Now there is this kind of white mist coming out of my wand._ Progress._" She said and he laughed quietly. "I think there's something wrong with my wand." She said after a while.

"Why?" Severus asked.

"Because it just feels like a wooden stick." She said, turning to face him. "That's not how it's supposed to feel, right?"

"No, but your wand was provided by the school out of an existent stock. They skip all that _the wand chooses the wizard _thing. They just give you what they have." She scrunched up her face, unsatisfied with his answer. After a few seconds her expression changed and she sat up on the bed.

"Lend me yours." She said, with a mischievous smile.

"What?" He asked. "Do you think that would work?" She nodded excitedly, and he reached for his pants, that were currently on the floor. He took his wand out of his pocket and handed it to her gently. She took it carefully and tested how it felt on her hand.

"Try a basic spell first." She nodded and pointed it at the pillow.

"Wingardium Leviosa." She said and the pillow floated to the ceiling of the room. "It works." She said. She put on a shirt and walked to the middle of the room.

"Focus." He said and she took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and pointed the wand at the space in front of her.

"Expecto Patronum." She said, and out of the wand came a lot of white shiny mist. She slumped her shoulders and lowered it. "Forget it." She said and turned to give it back to him, but he stopped her.

"No, no. Wait." He said, putting his boxers on and walking to where she was. "You are definitely not going to get it you try it like that. Are you really thinking of your happiest memory?" He asked.

"Yes!" She said, frustrated. "I assure you it is. But judging by the cute _mist _that comes out of the wand, that's not the problem." He nodded.

"Do you think you can do this?" He asked, and she raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. Of course." She said and he looked at her. "Sure..." He raised his eyebrows. "Yes?" She said, unsure. "No. I don't."

"There you have it. If you don't think you can do it, you won't be able to. I think you're wrong. You can do this, I believe in you." He said and hugged her from behind, kissing her cheek. She smiled. "Try again." He said and walked back a few steps.

She took another deep breath and closed her eyes, focusing on the feeling of Severus' wand on her hand, something so important to him that he gave to her without a second thought, and on her happiest memory.

_"I love you." Severus said, and his eyes widened like he knew he had said the wrong thing, and she couldn't help to think that he looked **so cute** and it was also the first time he said it and there were so many butterflies doing a mad dance on her stomach and she couldn't believe this was happening to her. _

_"I love you too." She replied, and they were kissing madly and they made love again and again and it felt so perfect and so wonderful and **so right**._

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" She yelled after opening her eyes, and she had to took a few steps back because of the force of the bright light that was coming out of the wand. In a second the light turned into a gigantic grizzly bear, and she opened her eyes so wide she thought they were going to pop out of her skull.

"Fuck." She whispered at the same time Severus said _bloody hell, _behind her. The bear roared silently, while they just looked at it, dumbfounded.

"Makes sense." Severus said and she turned to look at him, getting distracted and breaking the spell.

"Whaa...?" She asked dumbly, her attention still on the Patronus that had just disappeared.

"In the end, one's Patronus is a reflection of your personality, state of mind and... soul. It makes sense a grizzly bear is yours." He was deep in thought for a second. "But it was so big... and powerful. What memory gave you that level of power?" He asked, curious. She was zoning out, looking at the wand on her hand, but she still answered. Probably without even realizing what she was saying.

"The first time you said you loved me." She said, and he looked at her, in silence. After a few seconds she came back to her senses and looked up to find him staring at her attentively.

"What's wrong?" She asked, frowning.

"Your happiest memory... the memory that made you conjure such an imposing Patronus... is of me saying that I loved you?" He asked, no emotion on his voice. Her frown deepened, if that was possible.

"I honestly don't care if you think it's stupid." She said and handed him his wand. He didn't take it, he just kept looking at her, his face emotionless.

"I'm starting to get scared here, Severus. What's wrong?" She said quietly and moved close to him, putting her hand on his cheek. His eyes watered the moment her skin made contact with his and he shut his eyes tightly. "Oh god." She said and threw his wand to the bed, so both of her hands were free. "Severus, love. What happened?" She asked, holding him tightly as he broke down, falling on his knees to the floor, and started to cry with his face buried on her shoulder. She whispered sweet nothings on his ear while she waited to for him to calm down, and after a while he finally did.

"I'm sorry." He whispered without looking up.

"What for?" She asked, stroking his hair.

"Being weak." He answered, his voice hoarse.

"Crying doesn't make a person weak. Especially when it's you. But what made you so sad?" She asked and he finally looked up.

"It wasn't sadness." He said looking into her eyes, communicating without words. And she knew that even if she had showed him a thousand ways that she loved him, he still didn't believe it completely. Until now. "I love you so much." He said and she smiled and her eyes filled with tears too, and in a second she was crying and the next they were kissing. It was messy and wet, and they both had trouble breathing because of Juliana's sobs, but it was the one that sealed their bond and brought them closer than ever before.

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><p>"It's so late." Juliana said, getting dressed quickly, Severus looking at her. "I go first today. Wait at least half an hour before going yourself." She said and walked to him as he nodded, kissing him hard. "I'll see you tomorrow. I love you." She said and pulled him closer.<p>

"I love you too." He said and they kissed one more time, for at least ten minutes before the door appeared on the wall and she exited the room.

Severus took his time to get dressed, the memories of the last hours still fresh on his mind, making him have a smile on his face he couldn't suppress.

When he was about to put his shoes on, he saw a shiny object on the floor close to him. When he walked to pick it up he discovered it was Juliana's necklace, that was actually a locket, with the inscription _Only love will set you free_ carved on it on Portuguese. As far as he was concerned she was the only one who could open it, and he confirmed that fact after trying for five minutes to open it without succeeding. He finally put his shoes on, and put her necklace on his pocket to return it later.

When the time was up he left the room and made his way to the Slytherin dormitories. He didn't see anything out of place on his way there.

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><p>Juliana walked at least five minutes before noticing she was being followed. She began to turn around every twenty seconds, and to get too aware of her surroundings. She finally heard a loud noise behind her that made her stop and turn her whole body, only to find nothing. When she turned again, she collided to a hard chest, seeing a flash of green fabric in front of her.<p>

"You shouldn't be here. What are you doing out of bed?" She sighed. _It's just a prefect, _she thought and looked up. He wasn't. _Mulciber. Run. _Her mind shouted.

"Yeah... what are you doing out of bed?" She heard a voice say behind her and she felt a chill run down her spine. She knew that voice, and she knew she should be scared. She couldn't make a run for it, Mulciber could stop her in an instant. So she just turned around to face Avery's cold and evil look.

"Call the others." He said to Mulciber, who nodded and left. Juliana's mind was running wild, thinking of ways to get out of that place or make Avery harmless so she could scape. Apparently, his mind was faster than hers, and with a simple move of his wand her body went limp and she could only stay there standing without moving.

"Don't worry, I won't do too much damage until the others are here." He said in a fake reassuring tone. "You know... I really don't know how could you think someone like you could try to be with someone like us and get away with it." Her eyes, the only thing she had control of, widened and he laughed. "Oh, yes. I know. I know all about your escapades, and how in love you both are. Don't worry, though. The other's don't know you're dating. Only I know." He said and walked to her, touching her face with his free hand. "I won't tell them... because everyone would consider him a blood traitor and he would be no use to me. I can't let that happen, can I?" He asked, his voice soft. She wanted to scream, but settled for burning the hand he had on her face. He removed it quickly and looked at her with pure hatred and disgust. "How dare you, you disgusting bitch!" He said holding his burned hand into his chest. "CRUCIO!" He screamed at her as he pointed his wand to her face, and she felt like her insides were being torn apart and acid was flowing through her veins. She couldn't do anything, and she felt the tears on her cheeks and the sweat forming in her entire body.

But he wasn't satisfied.

He lifted the spell that didn't let her move and she instantly fell to the floor, but when she tried to scream she discovered that she still couldn't. She heard footsteps getting closer and let herself be hopeful for a second, before hearing the laughter of the others.

"That's a good start. Allow me." She heard an unknown male voice say before feeling like her back was being burned. She writhed in pain and they laughed.

"I'm not done yet." She thought she heard Avery say, because at this point her mind was getting fuzzy and she definitely could not control her magic enough to fight back. "Crucio."

And the initial pain was there again, only this time it was stronger and she knew she was about to faint. There was a big gash on her back and it was bleeding a lot. If she didn't get help soon she was surely going to die of blood loss. She tried to concentrate enough to break the spell that keeping her from screaming but it was too hard and she was feeling more and more tired by the second.

"I didn't bring you here to enjoy the view." Avery said and she opened her eyes just enough to see about six blurry figures looking down with their wands pointing at her. And she knew that if she wanted to live the moment to act was now. So the second before Avery said _now _and six people used the Cruciatus Curse on her, she was able to broke the silencing spell, and when the curses hit her, she let out an ear shattering scream that made all of them stop and run away, except for Avery, who crouched and brought his face close to hers.

She was shaking hard, her skin was grey and pale, there was a puddle of blood surrounding her and her eyes were completely bloodshot.

"If you say anything about who attacked you or I found out that you are asking anyone for help, prepare yourself to see him die before your eyes." He threatened and stood up to kick her hard on the stomach before leaving.

He didn't need to say who he was talking about. She knew. Like she knew he wasn't lying, and that they had tried to kill her. She was was making a big effort to stay awake, but every second it was getting harder. She couldn't see anything but blurred shapes, and finally went unconscious with the sound of hurried steps and the feeling of being lifted up from the floor.

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><p><strong>So... it happened. If you'd like to review what you think of the last scene... you are totally welcome.<strong>

**Yeah... ok bye.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Once again, thanks to **_readingaddict24_ **for the review!**

**This is the first chapter where Fred and Cassandra get explored in more depth, yay. This is also the longest one so far, taking the title from the good old Chapter 10.**

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><p>"Oh my God." Cassandra said as she saw the house in front of her. It wasn't big but it looked very cozy, and had a big backyard and a beautiful garden at the front. "I love it!" She said looking at her mother, who smiled.<p>

However, her smile was gone when she saw her daughter hesitation to go inside.

"He's inside." She said. "He should be fine by now, go greet him. He missed you." Cassandra's face lit up and she ran to the door, opening it carefully. She looked inside and didn't see anyone, but she heard the noise of a mug on a table coming from her right. She quickly made her way inside and followed the sound.

"Dad!" She said excitedly as soon as she saw him and ran like a little child into his arms. He greeted her with a smile and hugged her tightly. "How are you feeling?" She asked, her voice muffled by his chest.

"I've been better." He answered, rubbing her back. He tried to pull away but she didn't let him, and he kissed her head softly. He felt her tremble and looked down to discover that she was crying.

"I'm sorry." She said between sobs.

"There's nothing to be sorry for." He replied, stroking her hair. In that moment Juliana entered the room, a long sigh coming out of her mouth when she saw the state her daughter was in.

Cassandra finally pulled away, drying her tears with her sleeves and went to sit down on a chair.

"Here." Severus said handing her the mug that was on the table, sitting on the chair opposite to her. "I made it for you."

Cassandra grabbed the mug and took a sip as her mother bent to kiss her father briefly on the lips. Juliana sat down on the chair next to Severus, holding his hand tightly under the table.

"Did you have fun?" Severus asked Cassandra as she finished her cup of tea.

"Yeah..." She answered, absentmindedly. She realized her father was probably feeling guilty already for being the reason she was crying, so she tried to humor him. "Fred and George are a laugh." Her father rolled his eyes, but didn't look mad. "What?" She asked, a smile on the corner of her lips. She knew the Weasley twins were a pain in the ass for most professors, her father being one of them.

"I didn't say anything." He answered and she smiled. She loved the way he was when he was alone with her and her mother. He looked happy.

"You did. With your eyes." She said, playing along.

"You can read my eyes?" He asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Of course." She replied, lifting her chin. "Mom can, and so do I."

"That's true." Juliana said, joining the conversation with a playful smile.

"Two against one is a bit unfair, I must say." He said and for a while they enjoyed the feeling that everything was fine.

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><p>"So, dad." Cassandra said after a long while of silence when they were together on the living room. It was dark outside and they had already eaten dinner. She was sprawled on the floor, reading a book, while her father was sitting <em>oh-so-properly <em>on the couch, also reading. That position was heavily contrasted by her mother's, who had fallen asleep with her head on his lap, her feet with no shoes on crossed on the armrest of the couch.

He lifted his eyes to look at her, suspicion written on his face.

"Yes?" He asked, his eyes falling back to the book on his hands.

"You know I meant when I said I really liked Fred and George."

"Yes, I am aware. What about it?" He asked, now closing his book and taking his reading glasses off, placing both on the table beside him. She also closed her book and rolled to her side.

"I need to ask you a huge favour."

"I can only imagine. Please go on."

"Well, I know that sending mail overseas is a huge thing." He rested his chin on his hand, already knowing where this was going. "And also, you can't make owls fly that kind of distances, it's barbaric!" He nodded. "So, if I wanted to communicate with someone who's on another continent, I could only do it by delivering the mail myself. And I can't do that. But if I had someone who could see this person I want to write to kinda often..." she trailed off, looking at him.

"You want me to deliver your letters to the Weasley twins?" He asked, his voice emotionless.

"I only talked with Fred about it, actually, but that would be it basically, yes. And also bring their responses to me." She said, carefully.

"You understand this can be dangerous." He asked, in the monotonous tone still on his voice.

"Yeah... but dad, look. This is like the only way to keep in touch with him. I really liked him and George, and if we don't do it the next time we see each other it's going to be awkward. We might see each other again in a year. And I would really like to be friends with them. I can ask Tonks to do it for the rest of the summer, but on the school year I really need you to help us. Please?" She asked, softly. He was silent for a few seconds.

"Okay." He answered and she beamed at him.

"Thank you thank you thank you thank you." She said and went to hug him, a difficult task because her mother was still asleep and she didn't want to wake her up. "I love you." She said, kissing his cheek.

"I love you too."

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><p><em>Fred,<em>

_You might be surprised that this letter was not delivered by my father himself, but by Tonks. There is an easy explanation for that. He accepted to do it on the school year, because he really is our only option, but during the summer we will rely on our dearest Nymphadora (please don't let her know I said that) to act as our post woman._

_How are things there? How is everyone? I hope your products are going well. If you're interested to know, here is beautiful. I went to visit the school yesterday, and it blew my mind. It's super modern and really looks like a regular American High School. There is no uniform either, how cool is that?_

_I would like to write more, but Tonks is about to leave and I need to give her this letter in five minutes._

_I'll wait for your reply._

_Cassie_

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><p><em>Cassie<em>

_George is actually reading over my shoulder right now, making sure I'm writing this. He wanted to ask you why you didn't write a letter to him, and he wants you to know that's he's very upset. Okay, he's already gone._

_Everything here is rather normal. Mum is making us clean every day, and it seems like we will never be able to finish._

_Did you know that there is a painting of Sirius mother that starts screaming if you make loud noises? I didn't. I found out yesterday, when I accidentally made something explode in front of it. It started screaming that we were all blood traitors and filth or something like that. It wasn't pretty, and her voice sounded like a parrot with a sore throat._

_As for our products, we came up with something really cool. We call them Extendable Ears, and they make you able to listen what is happening somewhere far away from you, as if it was really close. We are very proud of this one, it can prove itself very useful while Order meetings occur. They are not telling us anything, but that's not new._

_Hey, do you know anything about what they say on the meetings? If you do, telling me would be a very nice thing to do._

_On another note: no uniforms? That surely sounds cool. I'll be waiting for pictures of your adventures on Salem Witches Institute. Something tells me you're going to have fun. And you know I'm a fun lover._

_Merlin knows when you'll receive this letter. Tonks said she has a lot of work. That sucks. Apart from creating new products, your letters are the only thing that's not boring on this house._

_Hope you get this soon._

_Fred_

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><p><em>Fred,<em>

_I did not get your reply too soon, after all. It's been two weeks since you give it to Tonks, or so she says._

_Anyway, I hope you are not dying of boredom over there, you know, without my amazing writing to keep you entertained. _

_The town is so pretty! And the people here are amazing. Where I'm living is a muggle-wizard village, that is very close to the school. All the muggles here know about the wizards, and they help keeping it a secret. It's so lovely, it reminds me of Brazil, in a way._

_Oh my God, I almost forgot! Guess what! My mom got me a dog! There is a picture inside the envelope if you still haven't seen it. His name is Rocko and he's a purebred Pug. Isn't he lovely? It looks like his eyes are going to pop out any minute. _

_Oh, Tonks has to go again. Nothing much happened besides that, so I guess I'm not letting anything out. Also, I barely know anything about what goes on the Order meetings, and now that my father knows I'm writing to you, I'm pretty sure I'll know less than that._

_Hope everything is fine over there, say hello to everyone for me._

_Cassie_

_P.S. The folded paper with the name George in it is obviously for George, so please be a gentleman and give it to him without opening it._

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><p><em>Cassie<em>

_Everything is not fine over here. I'm not sure if your father already told you, but Harry and his muggle cousin were attacked by dementors. He was able to use his Patronus, but now they want to expel him from Hogwarts because of being underage and using magic in front of him. That is so stupid, and everyone is pissed. Dumbledore managed to get him a hearing on August, and we believe he will be able to avoid expulsion. Well, we hope. The Ministry and the Prophet are against them both, and they are trying to make them look like liars._

_Oh, I almost forgot. George said he forgives you for not writing him his own letter, and that he loves the drawing of you two you sent him. He thinks that with a little more practice you will be able to draw almost as good as a five year old._

_Everyone here says hello, and hope things are better for you there._

_I do too._

_Fred_

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><p><em>Fred<em>

_I am so sorry to hear about Harry, and so mad. They definitely want to take Harry out of the picture because he's giving the Ministry bad press. The news of Voldemort's return are known everywhere. People here talk about it, and most of them believe Harry. Don't tell him that, though. He will ask you how do you know._

_We are about to get my school supplies and Tonks is coming with us, so I can't make this letter too long. I can't make any letter too long, it seems. She will be returning as soon as we come back, so I need to give it to her now._

_Tell me how the hearing went as soon as you know. I believe they won't be able to do anything to him._

_I hope you can write soon._

_Cassie_

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><p><em>Cassie<em>

_Everything went fine. Harry was cleared of all charges, but now they hate him more than ever._

_I'm happy to hear that he has supporters on the rest of the world. I really wish I could tell him, he hasn't been having the best time here. But at least he's with Sirius and his friends, he missed them._

_I never asked when your birthday was. When is it? You know what, nevermind. I'll ask Tonks._

_Mine and George's is on April 1st, if you want to know. Presents are allowed._

_I think this will be one of the last letters before the start of the school year. I don't know how I feel about it yet. Please write me first._

_I have to go, a meeting is happening right now and we'll try to see if we can listen._

_Take care_

_Fred_

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><p><em>Fred<em>

_I'm really glad everything worked out for Harry. _

_Don't worry about the letters, my dad even said that he has no problem with giving you extra detentions just so you can give him the letters without being suspicious. We do have to be extra careful, you know._

_That was a joke. I just feel the need to point that out._

_By now you probably know my birthday is on October 31st. I can't believe your birthday is on April 1st. Honestly. It's the biggest irony in the world._

_Okay, I just realized that you probably don't know what I'm talking about._

_On April 1st there is a famous muggle holiday called April Fools, which consists on playing pranks to people all day long. So, it makes sense your birthday falls on that day. Like it's fate, or destiny, or something like that._

_I believe you can send one more letter before the school year starts. My dad said he will make sure you receive my letters by owl, but he can't do anything about yours, so you will have to give them to him personally. That's a little less pressure for you, I think._

_I will be updating you on my school year, even if you don't want me to. Also, please keep me updated too on how are things on Hogwarts. I am sure it's going to be a tough year for everyone._

_Good luck._

_Cassie_

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_Ha ha. What a comedic genius you are. Anyway, yes, it's way better if I receive your letters by owl. I'm also thinking that you should put a spell on them to avoid anyone else (except maybe George) to read them. _

_April Fools? I never heard of it. Frankly George and I quite excited. It seems like a cool holiday to share our birthday with._

_This is the last letter before the school year starts, that's true. We'll be taking the Hogwarts Express in two days. I'm guessing you'll be receiving this letter in about a week._

_Please, keep me updated on your school year. I really want to know how things work on your new school. I remember I saw a few girls from there on the Quidditch World Cup but that's all I knew about it. I'm interested._

_I will tell you how things are here, I also think it's going to be a hard year, especially for Harry. But that's nothing new._

_George sends his regards and asks that you stop forgetting about him._

__Good luck to you, __

_Fred._

* * *

><p>A few days after the start of term, an owl flew over Fred's head and dropped an envelope in front of him, just as he was finishing his breakfast. He knew it was from Cassandra because she wrote him with a pen on regular white paper, and always put her letters on a white envelope with <em>Fred<em> written on the front. His face brightened in an instant and George stifled a laugh. He opened the letter at record speed and saw that inside were several pictures. He left them there and took the letter out.

_Fred_

_Jesus Christ, Mary and Joseph. You don't know how amazing this school is. __As you probably noticed already, I sent you a lot of pictures. There are two of Rocko, I caught him chasing butterflies yesterday. Isn't he the cutest little thing? Yes he is._

_Back to the school, it's great. I don't mean to discredit Hogwarts and their ways, but everyone here is so cool! It's modern! We have Potions, but it goes more to the side of Chemistry, so we have this amazing classroom that really looks like a regular High School classroom, but has this sort of cauldrons that don't look at all like cauldrons. Actually they are silver and made of metal (I assume?)._

_We also have this GREAT History class where we study the influence of wizard society on the muggle world, focusing on the most relevant historical events._

_We share with you Defense Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration, and I have a Biology class that seems very similar to Herbology._

_They have a Quidditch team, but I don't think they're very good. It doesn't seem to be a highly relevant sport over here. We have P.E. once a week, and I already hate it._

_We can take an elective, and they have a Drama Club that seemed interesting, so that's what I chose._

_Tell George I haven't forget him. One of the pictures is just for him, you'll know which one it is._

_I gotta go, my dad is about to leave._

_Write soon_

_Cassie_

_P.S. He told me about Umbridge, I'm sorry for you. Please elaborate on that subject._

"That must be interesting, judging by your face." Angelina said as he finished reading the letter. He looked up and his smile disappeared.

"What? No. It's just my mum." He said, folding the paper and saving it on his pocket. She looked at him suspiciously. He grabbed the envelope and stood from his seat.

"George?" He said to his twin who looked up at him. "We better get going, we don't wanna be late for class." He said and George nodded, understanding what he meant and stood up too, grabbing a toast from a plate in front of him.

"Yeah, we don't." He said and they both left before anyone could say anything.

"Since when do they care about being late?" Angelina asked to anyone in particular. Lee looked at her and shrugged his shoulders.

They walked a few minutes in silence until they far enough. Fred opened the envelope and took the pictures out after handing the letter to George so he could read it.

"Hey, what's the picture for me?" George asked when he finished reading, leaning over Fred's shoulder too see better.

"I haven't foun-" he started to say but stopped when he saw the picture that appeared when he put the one on the top at the bottom.

"So this was the other picture she took of Rocko." George said, serious for a second before they both started laughing. "Give it, it's mine." He said and took it from his brother's hand before he could say a thing.

On the small photograph, Cassandra's dog was sitting on the floor, his mouth open with his tongue on the side, a sign hanging on his neck that read "GEORGE WEASLEY IS THE BEST GOOD ENOUGH", with the words _the best _crossed out. He put it on his pocket and tried to take the other pictures from Fred's hand, but he didn't let him.

"Hey! I want to see them too." He said.

"Yeah, wait til I finish. She took a lot." George rolled his eyes and kept walking.

"So... have you figured how you are going to deliver her reply?" He asked a few seconds later, clearly making fun of him. Fred gave him a hard look.

"If you must know, I have, yes. It was actually Cassie who gave me the idea." He said as he finished looking at the pictures and handed them to his twin.

"How?" George asked.

"Detention."

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_I wonder if your father told you how I managed to give him this letter. I'm sure he did so I won't talk about it. It wasn't nice so if you have any ideas for future letter sending I'll be glad to hear them. Read them. Whatever._

_You really made a man happy when you sent that picture to George. He wants to meet Rocko now, and if I recall correctly, he said about him that "he was the cutest little thing indeed". So, there's that._

_Your pictures are really cool to look at, but I really can't get used to them not moving. Salem Witches definitely sounds nice, but I'd choose Hogwarts every time. Not trying to make a "Which school is the best" argument here at all._

_Because Hogwarts would win every time._

_About Umbridge... I'm not sure you really want to hear about her. She's annoying and evil, and wears lots of pink. She was sent by the Ministry, so you figure how she teaches. She doesn't think practice is necessary when you're learning Defense, so she has this big, heavy and boring books that she expects the students to learn from. Absolute rubbish._

_She is too conservative, and she is an extreme blood purist. You should see the way she looks at some of the students and teachers. She is sure she is above everyone in the school, a__nd she also was responsible for the anti-werewolf legislation. I'm sure you know what that means._

_And what's even worse, she was named Hogwarts High Inquisitor by the Ministry, which basically means that the disgusting toad is able to fire any teacher she founds "unsuited" for the job, and basically do whatever the hell she wants._

_Anyway, George and I are not too worried about this year. We mostly just want to finish school once and for all, so we can open the shop. Academic developement is not a priority for what we want to do._

_Don't worry too much about this, enjoy your year, I'm sure it will be amazing._

_Take care_

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Fred<em>

_Yes, my father told me how you gave him the letter, and I honestly don't have any ideas. You'll have to work on something on your own. Sorry._

_I am aware of Umbridge's reign of terror on the school, my father told us quite a bit about it and her, especially. I really think you need to be careful. From what he told me, Umbridge's motto is "The end justifies the means", and her ends tend to be something that has to do with repression and her means are nothing short of physical and psychological abuse. Warn your brothers and their friends about this, things are probably worse than they thought._

_I hope they get better. _

_Cassie_

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_I thought you were exaggerating about her. I'm sorry I doubted you, even if you didn't even know. She has a hell of a way to punish students._

_She has a quill. It doesn't need ink and she said it was because it was "very special". At first I didn't know what she wanted me to do. She then told me and George that we had to write "I must not disrupt the order" as many times as we needed until it was finally clear. _

_The quill didn't need ink because it writes with your own blood, extracting it from the back of your hand where it carves what you're writing. _

_She did it to Harry too, and he didn't let us to talk with Dumbledore. I will try to speak with your father when I give him this letter. Ask him how the conversation went._

_I'm sad to say that things are not getting better, they are getting way worse._

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Fred<em>

_Well, my father told me you were really angry when you left his classroom. I think that by now you've had a chance to cool off and really think about what he said._

_Do not underestimate Umbridge, Fred. She has the power to fire every teacher who tries to step on her way and to expel every student who annoys her too much. Of course that she needs to be stopped, but at what cost? Someone who's ready to do that has to be prepared to be sacked or face expulsion. That's how it is._

_Inside the box that comes with the letter you will find a cream that will immediately ease the pain on your hand and will prevent any scarring. I have also added the recipe and a supply of the ingredients you'll need to make more, because I don't think you'll be able to get them being there. It's easy and very helpful._

_Things in the school are fine. _

_I have to go now, take care._

_Cassie._

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_Happy Birthday! I hope your dad gives you this letter on your actual birthday, he said he would. I never thought that I'd say this, but he might not be as bad as I thought._

_George is reading over my shoulder to make sure I say that your present is from both of us, and that the idea was actually his._

_Now that he's gone I can say that it really wasn't. It was mine._

_I hope you like it. I remembered you said that you joined a Drama Club on your school, and I didn't know what it was at first, but Hermione explained that it was an acting class. The lady that sold it to us in Hogsmeade said that they are only made and sold on Great Britain, so hopefully no one there will have one and you will get to be the super cool kid for once._

_Just kidding, you are super cool already. Tell me how it worked on your letter._

_I hope you have a great day_

_Fred_

_P.S. The cream was amazing, we can't thank you enough._

* * *

><p><em>Fred<em>

_OH MY GOD THAT WAS ONE OF THE BEST GIFTS I GOT! I really didn't believe a NECKLACE could do too much for my acting, but it's amazing! See, you put in on, and when get into character IT ACTUALLY CHANGES YOUR APPEARANCE TOO LOOK LIKE THE CHARACTER YOU'RE PLAYING. How crazy is that? It only lasts for about an hour before you have to take it off for a while, but that doesn't even matter. It's not a metamorphmagus-like change of appearance but it certainly does the job. Now everyone wants one._

_I'm sure it was super expensive. And I feel bad. But then I remember how cool it is and I feel good again._

_Seriously, thank you. It was an a amazing birthday gift. I will outdo you on yours, though. You just wait._

_Did you see the picture already? If you didn't, look at it. Isn't he beautiful? He had the hat on for five seconds before he ate it. It was enough time to take the picture, though. George can keep it if he wants it. Give it to him. Do it._

_I wish you would've been here. I've made some friends I'd like you to meet. I really hit it off with a boy on my Biology class named Steve, he's really funny and nice, you'd probably like him too._

_Okay, gotta go. I hope your next letter brings better news._

_Cassie_

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_I really didn't want to say this on my previous letter because I wanted to make it all about your birthday and whatnot, but things have gotten a little better, only because they've gotten worse. I hope that makes sense._

_I need to ask you something that I know will make you uncomfortable, but I need to trust you. You can't tell your father about what I'm going to say next, because I know he'd try to stop us because he'll say it's too dangerous. But we need this._

_With Harry on the lead, my brothers and I, with several other people, are part of a secret organization that we called Dumbledore's Army. The point is to learn actual Defense Against the Dark Arts, with Harry as our teacher. We are making a lot of progress, and he is great at teaching. Who would have thought._

_That Steve guy really sounds like a good catch. Funny and nice, isn't that what all women want?_

_I'd love to keep writing, but I'm about to go to Hogsmeade with Angelina, one of my closest friends. We went to the Yule Ball together last year. I attached a picture of her there if you want to see her._

_Take care_

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Fred<em>

_Holy mother! That girl is absolutely gorgeous! Was it a date? What am I asking, of course it was. Tell me how it went, and please don't make it awkward by spilling dirty details. Ew._

_And Steve is definitely a good catch! Kinda makes me wish he wasn't gay so I'd have zero chances to be with him instead of less than that, like I have now._

_Okay, moving on to the serious stuff._

_I promise I won't say anything about it. I'm actually happy that you found a way to learn how to protect yourselves. I'm sure you are being as careful as a human being can possibly be but that's not enough. I mean it, please don't let her find you, you can imagine how bad things will get if she does. I can't help but worry, she's a fucking tyrant._

_I hope everything goes well with Dumbledore's Army. I wish you all the best of luck._

_Also, my father will be coming home only one more time after you get this letter. He won't be back for at least two weeks, so if you want to answer and get a reply, do it in the day. Don't ask why. If you imagine the worst, it will be better than what's going on right now. Things are going downhill very fast._

_Be careful_

_Cassie_

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_IT WAS NOT A DATE. I told you, she's one of my closest friends. There is nothing going on between us, we just went together to the Yule Ball and things ended that night. Nothing._

_I'm sorry to hear that. But don't worry, this is why we do what we do. We are going to fight and we are going to win. That's a promise._

_George and I were able to finally cast a full Patronus. Mine is a fox, and you won't believe what George's is._

_If you guessed a dog identical to Rocko, you are right. I think he's in love. _

_I'm actually with your father right now, and he's looking at me. He said I coud write you a letter now but I have to be brief. I still have a detention to fulfill._

_No letters from you for two weeks sounds really boring, but I'll manage. _

_I have to go, your dad's stare is really powerful._

_I'll wait for your last letter_

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Fred<em>

_I hope I get to send you something on Christmas, but If I don't... well, Merry Christmas?_

_Jesus, when you say last letter it sounds like we're never going to write to each other again. This is the last letter for TWO WEEKS. Don't be so dramatic._

_Tell George I found amazing that his Patronus is a pug. To congratulate him, I sent him the beautiful pictures inside the envelope. I'm sure that if Rocko could talk he would be feeling very flattered, and he would want to meet him as soon as possible._

_My dad is leaving in five, I have to go._

_Say hello to everyone, I hope they're alright._

_Have a good holiday_

_Cassie_

* * *

><p>"Cass, Cassie... wake up." Juliana said, shaking her daughter's shoulders.<p>

"Hah?" Cassandra asked, trying to open her eyes. When she realized her mother was fully clothed, she went on alert mode immediately. "What happened?" She asked, fully awake.

"Nothing to your father. Dress up and pack something light, we're going to Grimmauld place. I'll explain in the kitchen." She said and left the room.

Cassandra put some clothes on really fast, and threw some more on one of her enchanted backpacks, with some other things. She went to the bathroom to wash her face and teeth, and walked quickly to the kitchen.

"What the hell is going on?" She asked, seeing her mother taking several bottles from her potions cabinet and handing them to Tonks, who was putting them inside a bag.

"Arthur Weasley was attacked. He survived thanks to Harry, who had a dream that he was a**_ big snake_** and tried to kill him." Tonks said.

"Oh no. Does this mean...?" she asked and both her mother and Tonks nodded. "Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." She said, rubbing her eyes. "How's Arthur?"

"Bad. The venom is not letting his wounds heal. However, your grandfather encountered this problem many years ago on one of his trips, and developed a cure. It takes 36 hours to brew and you can't leave it a second unattended. We are going there so I can help him." Her mother explained.

"Mom, Harry's gonna be there." Cassandra said, an implicit concern etched on her words.

"Yes, so is Fred." Juliana answered and she rose her eyebrows, but didn't reply. "Granted, you probably will have to be mostly locked up on a room, but it's two days. And I'm not letting my 17 year old daughter alone on this house without anyone too look after her. I may be overreacting, but honestly I don't give a shit right now." She finished, hotly.

Cassandra was feeling very worried. She was sure her mother was going to be of great help and Arthur was going to make it. But what was making her feel uneasy was the fact that she knew what Harry was experiencing wasn't a dream. It was his connection with Voldemort. Just one more thing to add to the pile of _everything is terrible._

"I need to take Rocko. There's no one here to take care of him." Cassandra said to her mother, who simply nodded. She went upstairs to get him, and put him inside a big bag. She also took all the Christmas gifts she had bought and put them inside her backpack.

"You're ready?" Juliana asked and Cassie nodded. "Close the zip of the bag and hold on to it tightly, you don't want Rocko trying to jump out. Open it again when we get there." They went to the backyard and Tonks closed all the doors and windows with a flick of her wand. "Okay. Let's go." She said and they all touched a broken doll that was laying on the grass.

* * *

><p>As soon as they appeared on the dark alley two blocks away from Grimmauld Place, the three noticed that Rocko was barking madly, and when Cassandra opened the bag, she discovered that he wasn't scared, he was actually excited.<p>

"Well, there is at least one living thing who likes travelling by portkey." Tonks said as the door appeared in front of them. They heard voices talking as soon as they got inside. It wasn't hard to tell, judging by their tones, that everyone was scared and worried.

Tonks went to the kitchen in a second, while Juliana took of her coat off and Cassandra let Rocko out of the bag.

* * *

><p>Fred saw Tonks enter the kitchen and immediately perked up. They were feeling very hopeful now that she had told them about Juliana's father. She was supposed to bring her there, so she could start brewing the potion that was going to cure his father.<p>

"Tonks!" He said, standing up. "Is she coming? Did you see Cassie? How is she?" He asked, very fast.

"Easy, boy." Tonks said, smiling. "Ask her yourself."

He was going to ask what did she mean by that because his brain wasn't working to well and he wasn't understanding what people said as fast as he usually did. But then he saw her. She walked trough the door and he felt the air being pulled out of his lungs. Her hair was now short, pixie cut short, and it looked even better than before.

She looked at him with worried eyes and walked forward and hugged him before he even knew what was going on. He didn't hug back for a second, but then she whispered _I'm so sorry _and his arms were around her waist holding onto her for dear life. And his mind was running wild and he was thinking _Her hair smells so good, has it always been like that? It smells like winter. How does anyone get the smell of winter on their hair? How is that even possible? I like it. My dad is dying. Why am I thinking about this? I have always been a horrible person, why can't I take things seriously? No wonder my mother thinks I'm a disappointment, I really am. _

"Fred, it's going to be okay. My mother knows how to do this, she has done it before." And that helped to calm him down, but he didn't want to let her go. A loud bark was the only thing that brought him back to reality.

"Is that..." George said, trying to look to the floor from his place on the table. He found what he was looking for very fast. "ROCKO?" He asked, something that made the dog look around him, trying to find who called his name. "Rocko, Rocko, come here boy, come here." George said and Rocko immediately started to wag his tail and ran to where he was. He stood up, resting two paws on his knee, and George picked him up.

That exchange was useful to lighten up the kids mood a bit.

"Sirius." Juliana said, entering the kitchen. "I need a warm room to work in. Naturally warm. Do you have one?" He nodded. "Okay, show me." She said and they were about to go when she turned and looked at Tonks.

"Tonks, I need you to go to St Mungo's and tell them that in 36 hours you will be delivering a potion to help him. They will be reluctant to that, so tell them this exact words: _I have someone who knows how to brew Carlos Souza's cure_. Every person who works on there will know what you're talking about." Tonks nodded and left as she and Sirius went up the stairs.

"I guess your grandfather is the real deal." Ginny said to Cassandra, who took her backpack off and walked to sit on the table with the others.

"He used to be, he died before I was born. Anyway, that's not why they'll back off. It because when he discovered this cure he wanted to make a deal with them, because they were the most reliable option for worldwide distribution. But he was young and they called him an 'obnoxious and deluded ignorant', mostly because he didn't speak English too well. Five months later, the news of his discovery where spread all around the world, but they didn't want to apologize and so they never heard of him again, and now they can't work with that cure." Cassandra said, shrugging her shoulders. Ginny just nodded.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Harry is here, it's best if he doesn't see you." She nodded. " Right now he's asleep, but he knows that a woman from Brazil was coming to brew a potion. You should try to avoid seeing him, he doesn't know the woman was bringing her daughter." Ginny said.

"But he can think that she brought her dog, right?" George asked, holding Rocko tightly on his arms.

* * *

><p>Juliana had been brewing for fifteen hours now, and had asked to not be disturbed by anyone. She was still awake thanks to the potions she had been drinking. She knew it wasn't good for her, but she was going to recover when she finished. So far, so good. Everything was going according to plan.<p>

On her room, Cassandra couldn't sleep. She wanted desperately to help her mother, but she knew that potion was way beyond her area of skill. So she was just laying on the bed, looking at the darkness, feeling useless and wishing she knew more. After about ten minutes of being with her eyes wide open staring at nothing, she decided that maybe a cup of tea would help. As far as she was concerned, Harry had been given a potion that made him fall sleep, so he was not going to be awake. She tried to not wake Rocko up when she got out of bed, but it was futile, and he was ready to follow her.

"Shh." She said and picked him up, taking him downstairs with her. "Why are you such a light sleeper?" She asked, and he just wagged his tail, which made her smile.

There was a light coming from the kitchen, but she was expecting that. Probably everyone was awake, so at least one person was going to be up. There was no one on the kitchen when she walked in, so she looked on the living room. She felt a lump form on her throat when she saw the scene in front of her eyes. Fred -because it was definitely him- was sitting on the couch, his elbows resting on his knees, head on his hands, and _definitely crying_.

At first she didn't know what to do. If he was alone in the dark when everyone else was asleep and was crying in silence, he probably wanted to be left alone. However, her heart was screaming that she needed to ask him if he wanted to talk, and basically just _be there for him. _

So she decided that he only needed to say once that he wanted to be alone, and she would leave. But not without talking to him first.

He still hadn't noticed that she was standing there, so she left Rocko on the floor and walked to him.

"Fred?" She asked, softly. He looked up fast, but seemed to relax when he saw it was her. She felt her own eyes fill with tears at the image of his wet cheeks and puffy eyes. She didn't know what to say, but he scooted over on the couch, signaling that he wanted her to stay. She sat very close to him, and they didn't speak for a while. She didn't speak because asking _are you okay? _or _how are you? _when she knew the answer to both questions didn't seem like a very nice thing to do. He didn't speak because he knew his voice was going to betray him.

She liked people to hold her hand when she was sad, and she hoped Fred did too, because she took one of his on hers and intertwined their fingers together. He looked at them for a while before squeezing her hand hard, and finally starting to speak.

"What if Harry didn't have that dream? What if there was no one there to help him? He would have died._ Alone._" He said, his voice breaking at the end of the sentence. She leaned to rest her head on his shoulder, and held his hand tighter.

"Don't think about the _what ifs _of life, Fred. You will be very unhappy if you do. You father is alive and recovering, and he will be cured in no time. Try to think about that, not what could have happened." She said softly and he nodded.

"I'm glad you're here, even if you can't come out of your room." He said after a while, his voice hoarse, trying to joke. She smiled.

"Me too."

* * *

><p>Fred spent most of his time with Cassandra on her room, while George spent most of his with Rocko. Juliana finished the potion successfully, and prepared it to be taken to St Mungo's at one a.m. By then, Ginny, Ron, Harry and Hermione were asleep, and they could leave without Harry noticing.<p>

The potion was going to be delivered by Tonks, and needed to be applied using a syringe, something that apparently was going to please Arthur a lot.

"Cass, do you have everything ready? We are about to go." Her mother asked, opening the door of her room. She nodded.

"I need to talk to Fred and George first." They both looked at her with identical eyebrows raised, and her mother closed the door again.

"Okay, God knows when will I see you again, so I wanted to give you your Christmas presents in person. Well, it's actually more like a big individual present for both of you." She reached for her backpack and pulled out a a box -that was clearly bigger- from the inside.

"How the hell..." George said and she looked at him. "Yeah, magic. Nevermind."

"Okay. Don't get mad but you won't be able to open it until Christmas. I put a spell on it." She said.

"What?" They asked at the same time.

"That's what they teach you at that school of yours? They're evil." George said, trying to open the present anyway. He couldn't.

"Well, using a wand does have its perks. Okay, I have to go now." She said and slung her backpack on her shoulder.

"Wait! We'll give you yours too." Fred said and they both disapparated from the room with a loud pop, making her jump.

"God, I hate that." She said to no one and crossed her arms. They were back before a minute passed, carrying one small box each.

"You won't be able to open them until Christmas, either." George said as they both handed the presents to her.

"Fair enough." She said, putting them on her backpack. "Now I really have to get going." They both nodded and walked down the stairs with her, Rocko on George's arms.

"Ready now?" Her mother asked.

"Yeah, let's go." She said before turning to face the twins. "George, give me my dog." George seemed very unwilling to do this but finally placed him on Cassandra's open arms. She put him on her bag and handed it to her mother. "Goodbye. Say hello to Arthur for me, and tell him that I wish he gets well soon." She said and hugged them both.

"Will do." They both said with a sigh and a small smile.

And with that she left, leaving a longing feeling on their chests, especially Fred's.

* * *

><p><strong>Wow. 8k words. That sure is a lot, right? Yeah. Okay, if you want to review, please do.<strong>


	16. Chapter 16

**Happy Valentine's Day to everyone who likes to celebrate it and stuff! **_readingaddict24_**, your reviews have a special place on my heart.**

* * *

><p><em>"So sorry... my fault... love you so much..."<em> Were a few of the things Juliana was hearing while unconscious. She could barely make the words, but she knew whose voice was that. She wasn't able to wake up, but she was able to think. And think she did. Right now, her mind was going crazy.

To put it simply, everything had went to shit. Avery knew about her and Severus, and by know she had deducted that probably the whole school knew she had feelings for him. She hoped he had kept his word and nobody else knew those feelings were mutual, but she was expecting the worst.

_I won't tell them... because everyone would consider him a blood traitor and he would be no use to me. I can't let that happen, can I?_

**__He would be no use to me.__**

She had reviewed those words over and over and over again, only to arrive to one conclusion: he was going to take advantage of this newfound knowledge to make Severus join Voldemort's side. Sadly, there was nothing she could possibly do to make him decline his offer. If he did, Avery was going to kill her, him, and her family if it was necessary.

But Severus was there with her, she could _hear him. _So, what was he going to do? What was going to happen? What was happening right now, while she was unconscious?

What was she going to say once she woke up and Dumbledore asked her who attacked her?

**Nothing.** That's what.

She knew Dumbledore could not offer them any kind of protection. His good intentions were not going to be enough. Avery just needed a second to kill someone, and Dumbledore was not going to be able to do anything to him, even if he caught him in the act.

That's how screwed up everything was.

So, when she woke up, if she ever did, she was going to say that she didn't see who attacked her. Yes, that was the best thing to do.

* * *

><p>Severus was making his way downstairs to the Slytherin Common Room, his hand on his pocket, playing with Juliana's necklace, when he was stopped by one of his housemates. He had seen him around before, but he didn't know his name.<p>

"Snape," He said, looking him up and down. "I still don't know what made her like you, but I guess one person in the world had to to find your sourness endearing. Don't worry about it, though. She's already been taken care of." He said with a wink. Severus face, as usual, was a mask of indifference. But if you looked into his eyes very closely, you'd probably see that he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The boy was about to leave, but he grabbed him from his shirt, roughly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" He asked, dangerously.

"Don't need to get so violent." He said, taking his arm off his hand, his playful attitude still on. "Well, you just woke up so you may not know but..." He said, a vicious smile forming on his lips. "You know that girl, the Brazilian monkey?" He asked and Severus nodded, resisting the urge to stab him in the eye with his wand. "Well, apparently the idiot is **in love with you**." He said, now laughing. "Don't ask me how I know, but the source is reliable. And last night she got a visit from the good old lady Justice, who showed her how things are meant to be on this school, if you know what I mean." He finished, winking again.

By now, Severus clenched his teeth, using all the self control he had to not kill him right there.

"No, I don't know what you mean." He said, and the boy rolled his eyes.

"She's on the infirmary now. Unconscious, barely dead. Wish I didn't have to say _barely_." Severus swallowed hard and felt an enormous need to throw up. Apparently the disgust was showing on his face, and the boy misinterpreted it for disgust towards her.

"Yeah, I know. Fuck, I'm already late." He said fast and disappeared.

Severus didn't go to class that day.

* * *

><p>By dinnertime, he was looking way too pale for his own good. He had spent the entire day throwing up and trying to not faint. He had also cried, and cried, and cried again, all while his self hatred grew bigger than ever before.<p>

How had this happened? They were so careful, no one could have known what was going on between them. He was trying to avoid everyone, but when everyone was coming back from the Great Hall, he finally got his answers.

"Severus, my friend. Are you okay? You don't look too well." He heard a distant voice say from his spot on the couch next to the fire. When he looked to see who it was, he found a pair of cold eyes he was never happy to see.

Avery sat down next to him, and whispered on his ear.

"Are you sad that you won't be seeing your dear girlfriend tonight, like you usually do?" He said with a smirk and Severus went from pale to completely white in a second. His eyes widened and he looked at him. Avery laughed maliciously. "Oh yes, I know. I had so much fun with her last night." He said and Severus wanted to lunge at him, but the room was too crowded and his common sense wasn't totally gone. So he just narrowed his eyes at him, his jaw clenched. "Oh no, don't be getting all upset now. Unfortunately, she's going to live." He said, faking sadness. Severus was breathing heavily, and his head was starting to spin. "However, neither her or you are going to in the close future if you don't do what I tell you. Because I promise you, Severus, that if you don't do as I say, I will deliver her to the Dark Lord myself. And that's not going to be pretty. Well, for her, at least. And you know I always keep my word." By now, Severus could barely hear him, and before being able to even think about answering, he fell to the floor, unconscious.

* * *

><p>He woke up in the dark, gasping for air. He quickly surveyed his surroundings, only to discover he was now laying on a bed in the infirmary.<p>

The infirmary.

_Juliana_.

He sat on the bed at record speed, but the sudden movement made him dizzy and he fell to the floor.

"Mister Snape, what are you doing out of bed!" He heard Madam Pomfrey's voice screaming.

He tried to get up but he could not stay still, it felt like everything was spinning. His head hurt like hell, probably because of the force of the fall to the floor when he fainted, and he accepted that he wasn't able to stand up without any help. So he took her arm and let her lay him on the bed again.

"Here, drink this." She said and handed him a goblet of something that tasted horrid, but he drank without complaining. In a few seconds, he felt the dizziness and headache go away, and was finally able to fully take in the scene in front of him.

Apparently, he had woken Madam Pomfrey up, because she was wearing a nightgown.

"What time is it?" He asked, fully awake now.

"3 a.m. Now, I suggest you try to get some sleep, because you won't be able to leave until tomorrow noon, at least."

Severus was about to nod when his eye catched something on the far corner of the wing. There was a bed with closed curtains. Seeing as he was the only other person here, _she_ had to be there.

"Who's there?" He asked, trying to sound calm. Madam Pomfrey looked behind her and sighed, sadly.

"Juliana Souza, the exchange student. She was brutally attacked last night. But don't worry about her, try to get some sleep." She said and was about to leave when his voice stopped her.

"What happened?"

"Well, she received a powerful slicing curse that hit her on the back, leaving a big gash that led her to almost bleed to death. Luckily, Professor Dumbledore found her before that happened."

"Do you know who did it?" He asked, his voice hoarse. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, we don't. Why?"

"Just asking." He answered, trying to not sound too desperate. "Did they do anything else to her?"

"Well... as far as physical harm, no. Psychological... we're not so sure." She said, implying something he understood immediately. "But I shouldn't be talking about this with you. Now, sleep. Professor Slughorn brought you looking very sick, you need it." She said and left the room quickly.

Severus, obviously, was not able to fall asleep. He waited at least half an hour to make sure that she was not coming back, and quietly made his way to the end of the room.

He spent several minutes standing in front of the closed curtains, trying to gather enough courage to finally open them.

When he did, he felt his world falling apart inside him.

If it wasn't for the light movement of her chest, he would swear she was dead. Her normally olive skin was looking abnormally pale, something that made everything seem more real.

Her torso was wrapped in gauze, this being the only thing covering it. He took a few hesitant steps at first, as if walking to close meant that he was going to harm her further, and slowly made his way to the side of her bed.

He stood next to her for some time, just looking at her face, taking her appearance in.

_When did this happen?_

He decided, after a while, that it surely had been between the time she left the Room of Requirement and the time he did.

It was half an hour.

_How long did they torture her?_

Not much, probably. But they clearly didn't waste their time. He wondered how Dumbledore found her.

_Did she scream?_

Maybe, but Avery surely had put a silencing spell on her.

_Then how? Did she break__ the spell?_

Well, a wand is not a necessity for her.

_It's all my fault._

Severus kneeled on the floor so he could be face to face with her.

"I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I shouldn't have let this happen. Please wake up. Please forgive me. I love you so much." He said and felt the tears beginning to fall.

He took her hand -her cold, limp hand- on his and kissed it.

"I'm so sorry." He said over and over again.

He just stayed by her side, caressing her hair, until he saw the first morning light coming through the window.

"Love, I have to go. I will be back tonight. I promise. I love you." He said and bent down to kiss her forehead sweetly, before closing the curtains and returning to his own bed.

What he didn't hear, of course, was a soft sound coming from her mouth that sounded _too much_ like his own name.

* * *

><p>Juliana was aware that she was still unconscious, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't wake up.<p>

She tried to hear something, but that proved to be a very difficult and tiring task. What wasn't tiring, however, was feeling.

She felt.

She felt the gash on her back giving her terrible pangs of pain that came without warning and didn't stop for a long time.

She felt the soft gauze wrapped on her body.

She felt the material of the sheet covering her, making her body feel warm.

But what she felt more than anything else was the beautiful feeling of a pain of familiar lips on her forehead.

_He's here. __He's here. __He's here. __He's here. __He's here. __He's here. __He's here. _

_He's here. With me.__  
><em>

_Severus. __Severus. __Severus. __Severus, can you hear me? Severus. Please. Don't go. Severus._

She tried to say something with all the strength she had, but she knew it wasn't working.

_God, no. Please. Please. C'mon._

_"Severus."_

But he didn't come back.

* * *

><p>Severus was released at noon, like he was told. As Madame Pomfrey was doing the last check on him, he dared to ask about Juliana.<p>

"Is the girl any better?" He said, trying to sound indifferent.

"Well, the wound is closing. Her mother is coming today, and... I don't know why I just told you that. You're good to go." She said, taking a few steps back.

_Her mother is coming. I'm dead._

_No, she knows no one can know about us. She's not going to seek me out. And he doesn't know why Juliana was attacked. Should I tell her?_

_I owe it to her. But I can't even tell her in person._

Severus left the infirmary feeling conflicted.

Her mother deserved to know why her daughter was attacked, but how was he going to tell her if he didn't even know everything about the situation himself?

As he was making his way through the hallways, he came across the last person he wanted to see.

"Severus!" Avery said, as if greeting an old friend. "I was just looking for you. Are you feeling better?" He asked in a fake concerned tone. When Severus opted for narrowing his eyes instead of answering, he kept talking. "I think a walk through the grounds of Hogwarts would do you some good. And I just happen to have a free period right now." He finished with a friendly smile that didn't succeed on masking his malicious intentions. Severus knew better than to decline, so he just followed him.

"What do you want?" He asked in a low voice as soon as they were away enough from any prying ears.

"Can't I just walk with a friend?" He asked with a smirk, his words filled with venom. Severus kept silent. "Yeah, well, you got me there. You know what? I think you already know the answer." That was true. "School is ending in two months, and I don't now about you, but I already made plans for my future. If you know what I mean." Severus didn't respond, but he did know what Avery meant. "Have I ever told you how good you are at potions? You know, a skill like that can be very useful, for the right people." He said, being 'vague' on purpose.

"Get to the point." Severus said angrily.

"Okay, okay." Avery answered with a laugh that soon turned into an evil sneer. "You will join his cause, Severus. As soon as school is over. And you don't get to say no, because if you do... _she_ pays. You know... I'd be more than happy to show her how a real man does _it. _I would love to have her begging for my mercy. Obviously, I wouldn't need to do that if you don't try to be a hero."

Severus closed his eyes tightly and felt himself wanting to vomit.

"I'll do it."

* * *

><p>Right now, Juliana was sure she heard her mother's voice. That made sense, the school had probably told her about the attack, and she traveled to see what had happened.<p>

_I wonder what they will say to her. She knows about the danger Severus and I would be on if Slytherins knew about us. Maybe she can make a deduction? _

But her mother wasn't on her right mind now, seeing her looking dead on her bed. She didn't make any deductions. All she did was ask herself how could someone harm her daughter like that.

_She'll want to take me back to Brazil. But the year is about to end. I hope she doesn't._

And after a long talk with Dumbledore, Isabel decided to let Juliana finish the year.

But Juliana didn't know that. All she knew was that in a second her mother had kissed her head and in the next she couldn't feel her there anymore.

_I hope Severus is alright. God, what if he already talked to Avery? What if I can't see him anymore?_

She didn't know how right she was.

* * *

><p>A week after the attack, Juliana was finally able to open her eyes. Madam Pomfrey was at her side in a second.<p>

"Oh, dear. You are awake." She said with a relieved sigh. She checked on her for a few minutes, giving her enough time to wake up completely.

"What day is it?" She asked and was surprised to hear her strained voice. She tried to cough, but her mouth was almost completely dry. "How long was it?"

"Here, take this." Madam Pomfrey said, handing her a glass of water that she drank in three seconds. "It's been seven days." She answered, and Juliana's eyes widened.

"Seven days? What?" She said, sitting up suddenly, which only served to make her feel a sharp pain on the skin of her back that made her scream.

"Oh my. Go easy on that. You were hurt pretty badly. Now, I need to ask you a few questions." Juliana took a deep breath, she knew what was coming. "Do you remember anything from that night?"

"I ony remember my back burning and people screaming_ Crucio_." She said, and Madam Pomfrey's eyes widened in an instant. "Nothing else. I screamed and then blacked out. I didn't see anyone." She finished, as convincing as she could.

"You didn't see anyone? You don't know how many people attacked you?" She asked, her voice an octave higher.

"No." Juliana replied, dryly.

"Juliana... what were you doing up that late, walking through the hallways, dressed on regular clothes?" Madame Pomfrey asked, carefully.

_Okay, here it comes. _She thought.

"I have not been sleeping very well. I'm not doing very good on my studies, so I thought that maybe walking would help me clear my mind. I know it's not allowed, but I thought that doing it one time wasn't going to hurt anyone. It didn't, except for myself." Juliana said, and even she was surprised of how sincere it sounded. The look on the older woman's face showed that she had believed it.

"Okay, that's enough for today. You still need to rest. The wound on your back is not fully healed yet." She said and left her alone.

* * *

><p>Dumbedore came to see her later that day, and asked her pretty much the same questions. Except that Juliana was sure he knew what had happened, and was trying to make her say the truth. She didn't, and he eventually gave up, looking really disappointed at her.<p>

Madam Pomfrey made her drink a potion that her mother had left for her. She listened the woman talk for fifteen minutes about how amazing Isabel was. When she finally left, Juliana fell asleep the moment her head made contact with the pillow.

* * *

><p>She was dreaming about Severus. They were hugging and laughing and everything was right. And then she kissed him.<p>

But kisses don't feel like that when you're dreaming.

That was real.

She woke up with a gasp and looked around trying to find _him _because she was sure he had been there. And _he had kissed her._

When she found nothing, she sighed and laid back again. Being unable to sleep, she turned to her side, trying to get more comfortable.

And then she saw it.

Sitting on the table beside the bed was an envelope that read _Juliana _on _his _handwriting. Her eyes widened and she opened it in a second. She lit up the candle next to her without even noticing, and started reading.

_I'm so sorry..._

_...I had to say yes, you know what could happen if I didn't..._

_...we can't see each other anymore..._

_...please forgive me..._

_...I love you more than anything..._

_...don't try to find me._

_Goodbye._

When she reached the end of the letter, her cheeks were already soaked with tears, and the sobs were making her shake uncontrollably.

As soon as she read the last word, she saw the letter turn into ashes in her hands.

"Oh God, no, no, come back, come back." She sobbed, the ashes already disappearing.

However, in the middle of the night, while crying and feeling the pain of her first real heartbreak, she remembered one _very important_ thing.

_The contraceptive potion._

* * *

><p>She barely passed her exams. She couldn't focus, and she was sure most of her professors gave her an Acceptable out of pity. She didn't care.<p>

The night before the graduation ceremony she was packing. And when she went to retrieve the things from her drawer, she saw a small bottle that made her sigh heavily.

She was supposed to drink it the night she was attacked.

She was hopeful for the first month, but when her period did not come and she started experiencing morning sickness every day, she knew it was a lost cause.

She sat on her bed, bottle on her hands, and looked at her stomach. It looked like it aways did, but she knew that was going to change soon. She threw the bottle on her suitcase and closed it angrily.

She still didn't know for sure that she was pregnant because she hadn't taken any tests and she obviously hadn't told Madam Pomfrey, but at this point it seemed dumb to deny it.

_How am I going to tell him? _She had been asking herself.

The answer was simple.

_You're not._

* * *

><p>Severus was already gone by the time the graduation ceremony was happening. Avery stayed, of course, but he couldn't do it. He had tried to avoid seeing her at any costs, and that was going to destroy a the walls he had carefully built around his emotions.<p>

_One week. _That was what Avery told him. In one week, he was going to join _his side, _giving up the only good thing that he had on his life. _You're doing it for her. _He repeated himself day after day.

He didn't want to think about the things he was going to do from now on, because that alone was enough to drive him insane.

* * *

><p>After successfully raping and killing a muggle woman, Avery was celebrating with a large bottle of firewhiskey.<p>

He was alone this time, which was a rare thing these days.

He left the pub walking unsteadily, drunk enough to not notice he was being followed. He walked without knowing where he was going, and soon found himself in a dark alley.

"Avery." He heard a voice say and turned around.

"Severus!" He slurred, moving unsteadily from side to side. "Old friend." He said, his hand going to his pocket to retrieve his wand. Severus disarmed him in a second, and Avery raised his arms in surrender, a smirk on his lips. "No need to make a mess."

"I just have a question for you." He said, walking forward. Avery took a few steps back until he felt the wall behind him. "How did you find out?" There was no need to clarify. He knew what he meant.

"That was just luck." He answered with a laugh. "I should thank Sirius Black for that." Severus eyes widened in anger and he pointed his wand directly on his throat.

"What?" He asked, his tone dangerous.

"He said it one day, when he thought no one was listening. It was on Hogsmeade. He wanted to kiss her, she punched him. That was fun to see." He said, laughing. "He was drunk."

Severus anger had reached a point it never had before. The hatred on his eyes was so intense that Avery felt scared for the first time.

"Silencio." Severus whispered. "Crucio."

He didn't know how long he spent looking at Avery shake on the floor and scream without making any sounds, but when he stopped, he became worried he had drove him insane.

"Luckily for you, you won't remember any of this. Or about _her, _for that matter." He spat. "Obliviate."

When he was done Avery was unconscious on the floor, and he threw his wand at his feet, disapparating from the scene in a second.

Sadly, he learned to master that _crucial_ spell when the Dark Mark was already burned on his skin forever, and trying to get out of _his side_ meant a fate worse than death.


	17. Chapter 17

**A huge thanks and a virtual hug to this lovely people who favorited and followed this story and I didn't mention because I hadn't realized that the list was on alphabetical order instead of chronological. Yes, punch me in the face.**

_ .Uchiha, Mockingjay2001, bookivore, dragoon109, RionD, WantsHappyEndingsforAll, Mystic-Daughter of Mystique, SuperNaturalxxFreak _**and**_ Skylar97._

**I love y'all, and if you want to review, it is appreciated as hell (which reminds me that the biggest of hugs goes to **_readingaddict24_**, who reviews every chapter and makes me super happy)**

* * *

><p><em>Cassie<em>

_I can't tell you how helpful your Christmas present has been. The items are great source of inspiration. And I can't even begin to talk about The Guide For The Practical Prankster. Best book we've read. I honestly didn't know muggles had such cool things. I didn't even know they had joke shops. I can understand my dad's obsession a little better now._

_Did you like your presents? We honestly didn't know what to get you at first, because you don't listen to any wizard music so that was out of the question. We also didn't know if you'd like a book, so that wasn't an option either, and the only other thing we could buy you was clothes and that definitely was not going to happen._

_We got help from Ginny, though. She showed us the store and helped us pick which ones to get you, so the credit mostly goes to her._

_I hope you had a great Christmas. My dad was back and we could celebrate it with him, so we had a pretty good time. He's healing amazingly fast, and I speak for all my family when I say thank you. Please tell your mother that we will never be able to pay the debt we have with her._

_I hope you get this letter soon_

_Love,_

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Fred (and George)<em>

_I absolutely loved your presents. Thank Ginny for me, they are the nicest earrings and bracelet I own at the moment. I never take them off. Ask Tonks if you don't believe me. And they serve pretty well as a reminder of you both. Thank you._

_I probably should have mentioned that I have an addiction for Honeydukes' sweets. That could have made your search a lot easier and I would've been a happy lady. I'm glad I didn't, though. But now you know._

_My mother said that if you ever again dare to say that you have a debt with her, she's going to kill you._

_Okay, maybe she didn't say it like that... but she wants you to know that she did it without any ulterior motives, and the only thing you have to do in exchange is accepting that you don't owe her anything._

_We did have an amazing Christmas, we spent it in Brazil with my mother's family. It was so much fun. And an amazing New Year, too. Tonks stopped by with her parents. We had quite a good time._

_I almost forgot._

_Please ask your mother what kind of wool does she use to knit her sweaters. Not that I know how to knit... but I want to know. This sweater is honestly the most comfortable and warm piece of clothing I have. My mom loves hers too. And please thank her for us._

_God, it sucks that Christmas break ended. I already got used to being lazy all day. You know, if I knew what my Patronus was, I think it'd be a sloth._

_Yeah, that would make sense._

_Good luck with the rest of the year, I hope it doesn't get too much worse_

_Take care_

_Cassie_

* * *

><p>"Because maybe... you're gonna be the one that saves me..." Cassandra sang absentmindedly as she listened to the radio while doing her homework. "And after-" Her singing was cut short by the sound of the front door being opened roughly. She turned the radio off immediately and became alert.<p>

"Severus! What happened?" She heard her mother scream and in a second she was out of her room and coming down the stairs two steps at time.

"Dad? Oh God, what happened?" She asked, a look of pure panic on her face, her voice already strained.

"Potter." He spat, and she saw the anger and hatred on his eyes, and for a second she thought they were directed at the boy, but... no. She knew that look.

He was angry at himself.

"Cassandra, go make your father a cup of tea. No, a pot of tea." Juliana said and she obeyed without saying a word. She was in the kitchen and her parents were on the living room, but she could still hear them talking clearly.

"He looked inside the Pensieve." He said, and she knew he was probably trembling by now because his voice was shaking.

Her mother didn't answer for a few seconds. "What did he see?" She asked, her tone comforting, the same she used whenever Cassandra had a nightmare as a kid. She decided that her father was probably more comfortable talking to her mother alone, even if he knew she was listening, so she took her time to prepare the tea.

"He was only able to see when..." he began, his voice breaking at the end. He didn't speak for a minute. "When I called _her_ a mudblood. I pulled him out on time, but if I hadn't, the next thing he was going to see was me and you with Cassandra. What would've happened then? You know Voldemort already know about their connection. It would have meant the end for all of us." His voice was low now. "I was foolish. I put you both in danger." He didn't speak for a while. "I have... discontinued our lessons." He finished with a sigh.

Judging by his tone her mother had succeeded in calming him down, and she decided now it was a good time to bring him the tea. She placed it on the table in front of him and went to sit beside him on the couch, her head moving to rest on his shoulder. He placed his arm around her shoulders and hugged her close to him.

"I'm sorry." He said, kissing her hair.

"There's nothing to be sorry for." She replied quoting him and making him smile.

"It's already late, Cassie. You need to sleep." Her mother said and she nodded, getting up. It was late, but she knew the real reason why her mother said it was because she needed some time to talk to him alone.

Before she left she hugged Severus tightly.

"I love you, dad." She said.

"I love you too, darling."

* * *

><p>Severus was finishing his second cup of tea, now feeling at almost complete ease, when Juliana spoke.<p>

"Are you staying for the night?" She asked, leaning into him. Her hand went to the back of his head, softly running her fingers through his hair. He left the cup on the table and closed his eyes, sighing.

"Yes." He said, and turned his face so he could look directly at her. He felt her hand pushing his head forward, and a second later her lips were moving softly against his. However, like with all their kisses since they were teenagers, the situation got heated up very fast.

"Let's go to the bedroom." Juliana said before things went too far and he nodded.

On her room, Cassandra heard the door of her parent's slam and smiled/cringed at the thought of what was obviously going to happen.

* * *

><p><em>Dear Cassie<em>

_I'm sorry I didn't write for so long. Things are awful._

_I haven't told you about the Inquisitorial Squad yet, have I?_

_No, I haven't, because Umbridge just created it, with the power her new Headmistress title gave her. I'm sure your father has already told you what happened. Everything went from bad to worse to unbearable in a short time._

_The Inquisitorial Squad is a group of students who were given the power to do whatever they wanted, including docking house points and giving detentions. They also had the specific task of finding Dumbledore's Army. Which they did._

_Which leads me to the next subject._

_The school is practically burning, and George and I can't take it anymore. I was reading your old letters the other day and I came across something you said that really got to me. I don't think you'll remember, so I will write it for you._

_**Of course that she needs to be stopped, but at what cost? Someone who's ready to do that has to be prepared to be sacked or face expulsion.**_

_We've decided that we are ready to face expulsion. You know that finish our schooling was never relevant for opening the shop._

_We planed a great exit, and that means doing something we're sure Umbridge will never forget. Well, no one will._

_We got your birthday present. I think you really outdid us, they will be very useful when we open the shop. _

_We already know they cost you a fortune. When Ginny saw them, well, the tag on them, she said that Phillip Keiser was a worldwide famous designer, and that he never makes two equal suits. _

_But I promise that next time, I will outdo you._

_By the time you get this letter, we believe we'll be long gone from Hogwarts. The shop will be on 93 Diagon Alley, it's quite a nice spot. We plan on having a big opening day on April 20.  
><em>

_I hope you're not disappointed at us, we know everyone else is going to be._

_Love,_

_Fred_


	18. Chapter 18

**Special thanks to: **_YellowSummerDaisy, Magikat, MistGirl1423, tvismylife272 _**and**_ peeta1234567. _**You make my day happier.**

**And of course, a virtual hug to **_readingaddict24_**, who is the best ever.**

**Okay, this one is hella short. I think it's the shortest one so far. ****(I just checked and no, there is another one that is even shorter.)**

** But it had to be done, and even if is a filler chapter and kinda shitty, important stuff happens.**

**Bolded sentences are meant to be on Portuguese.**

* * *

><p>"<strong>So... I am.<strong>" Juliana said with a sigh. Her mother looked at her.

"**Yes, you are. I don't think you really believed there was a chance you weren't.**" Isabel replied, sitting next to her.

"**I find it hard to feel like this is my fault.**" She said after a while, rubbing her eyes.

"**Probably because it wasn't. Or Severus'.**" Her mother said, her tone soft.

"**Yes, I know. God, what am I going to do?**" She asked, her face buried on her hands.

"**Well, that's a question only you can answer. What do you want to do?**"

"**I did not mean it like that. I'm having this baby.**" She responded, her voice filled with determination. "**I mean what am I going to do after she's born. I need a job.**"

"**She?**" Her mother asked, one eyebrow raised. Juliana rolled her eyes.

"**You know as well as I do that she is a girl.**" Her mother nodded.

"**We'll figure it out. You wanted to become a potioneer, and you will. It may take a little more time... but we'll help you get there.**" She said, holding her hand.

Juliana stared out of the window for a long time, deep in thought.

"**Honey, are going to tell him?**" Isabel asked, carefully. Juliana took a deep breath.

"**No. Giving him something to lose is the worst thing I could do now.**" She answered, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

* * *

><p>Several months and a very noticeable belly later, Juliana was making herself a cake. When taking it out of the oven, she felt a strong contraction on her stomach, and bended because of the pain.<p>

"**Jesus, what are you doing in there, Cassie?**" She asked to her baby, ignoring the situation, until fifteen minutes later, when she felt another strong contraction. "**Oh God. What's happening, there are two months left still.**" She said to herself, making her way outside where her mother was taking care of her garden. By now she was freaking out and her breath was labored. "**Mom... I'm having contractions.**" She said, holding onto the door frame. Her mother looked up and walked to help her quickly.

"**How often are you feeling them?**" Isabel asked.

"**Um...**" she said looking at her watch. "**I already had two and last one was ten minutes ago.**"

"**Get in the car, we're going to the hospital.**" She said and Juliana did as she was told. Her mother went inside quickly to get the keys and was back in twenty seconds.

As Isabel started the car, Juliana winced in pain and closed her eyes tightly.

"**Shiiiiiiit. What's happening? She was supposed to be born on late December!**" She screamed, and felt something wet running down her legs. "**MY WATER BROKE!**" She cried out, her eyes wide and panicked.

"**Calm down, sweetie. It's just going to be a premature birth. You know you were born before it was due, too. Just breathe and try to relax, it will be easier.**" Her mother said in a soothing voice. Juliana nodded.

"**Yes. Okay. Relax. Relax. Sorry I broke my water on your car, mom.**" She apologized with her eyes closed, taking deep breaths through her nose and exhaling from her mouth.

"**Don't worry about it. We're almost there.**" She said, pulling over the parking lot of the hospital. As she opened the door, another contraction hit her.

"**Damn, fuck, shit. Relax, relax.**" She said to herself.

When they entered the building, a nurse took her to a room on a wheeling chair as her mother made the paperwork.

"**Don't worry Juliana, Doctor Ferreira will be here in a second.**" She said as Juliana placed herself comfortably on the bed. A few minutes after she left, a dark skinned woman with a gentle smile entered the room. Juliana sighed in relief.

"**Thank God you're here.**" She said and the doctor laughed.

"**I wouldn't miss it for anything in the world, darling. Now, let me see.**" She examined her for a few minutes before she talked again. "**You are not fully dilated yet, we will have to wait a few hours.**"

* * *

><p>"<strong>Oh, hello.<strong>" Juliana said as they handed her the smallest and most beautiful human being she had ever seen. "**How are you, Cassie?**" The baby had her eyes closed and was making small sounds with her mouth, but at the sound of her mother's voice, she slowly opened them. Juliana's breath itched. The eyes that were looking back at her were exactly the same as _his. _Her eyes filled with tears.

"**We will be taking her now, Juliana. She still is a premature baby and needs special care.**" Juliana sighed and the nurses took Cassandra away. Her mother came to her side and she hugged her.

"**She's perfect.**" Isabel said and her daughter started crying.

"**Yes, she is.**" She replied, drying her tears. "**What day is it? October 30?**" She asked and her mother shook her head.

"**It's already October 31.**"

* * *

><p>Juliana was able to take Cassandra home on December 17. The doctors said that she had had perfect health, just as if she had been born when she was supposed to.<p>

Everyone in the family fell in love with her the moment they saw her. She laughed and spent a lot of time drooling, but she loved the attention and always being on someone's arms. When she was five months old, her first two teeth appeared. With that, she decided that biting people was the most amazing activity she could spend her day enjoying.

When she was eight months old, after mumbling incoherent sounds all day, she finally said her first word.

"_Daddy._"

Juliana had made sure that Cassandra saw every day at least one picture of Severus. All while she pointed at them and said _Daddy. **Can you say **daddy**?** _So, even if she also encouraged every day to learn other words, her heart was ecstatic _that_ had been her first word.

Shortly before her first birthday, she was already able to walk. Her hair was long enough now for everyone to see that it was black as darkness, as black as _his._ Everyone in the family had seen that hair before. However, no one dared to ask what had happened to Severus. They knew that the moment they did, Juliana broke down.

After her first year, she was able to form mostly coherent sentences. She knew the names of everyone that visited often, and was able to recognize Severus on any photography.

But it was on the day of her third birthday that everything changed forever.


	19. Chapter 19

To the Guest who reviewed**: I wish I could hug you and bake you a cake. I honestly loved your review. I've been wanting to read something like that since I started the story. I will take your criticism into consideration, and I will do a bigger effort to make my writing seem more real. Thank you for taking your time to help me. You don't know how much I appreciate it. I also revised my old chapters, trying to change the amount of screams I put there. **

**However, I think it's important for me to ****emphasize the fact that English is not my native language. All I've learned I did by myself, by watching videos, movies, listening to music and reading. My vocabulary is not too diverse, and many times I find myself not knowing how to write what I want to say. I do my best, and I am aware that, most of the time, it's just not enough.**

**I overuse "said" as well, and I am aware of that. I'm trying to fix it, but it's hard.**

**Anyway, thank you so much. And if you want to keep reviewing and helping me improve, it's more than welcome.**

**Thanks **_readingaddict24_ **for reviewing again *hug*, I hope all your questions are answered on the next few chapters; and thank you to **_Pandannae03, RememberGoliad _**and **_alyana black _**for the follows!**

**...**

**There is a part on the chapter that is an exact transcript from the book. You'll know when you read it. Just wanted to clarify that I didn't write it, you know. Even if it's obvious.**

**This chapter is over 4k words, hope that makes up for the short ass chapters I posted before.**

**Warning: Fred can seem out of character but honestly I refuse to believe that everything is always sunshine and rainbows for him and George.**

* * *

><p>For Fred and George it had been a wonderful day. To put it simply, the Big Opening had been an absolute success. The shop had been filled all day with people laughing and enjoying themselves. Only remembering how much fun everyone had when they tried their products was enough to put a wide smile on Fred and George's faces.<p>

"I think we're done for today, Verity. You should go home." Fred said as he looked at the now empty shop with a pleased expression on his face.

"Thank you Mr. Weasley. Have a good night." She said with a smile and started put her coat on. "Until Monday, Mr. Weasley." She said to George on her way out.

"Goodbye, Verity." He replied, smiling at her.

"I'm gonna go get the boxes for restocking the shelves." George said and Fred nodded as took of his suit off and loosened his tie.

"Yeah, I'm gonna start counting the money on the register." After a few minutes of this, the bell on the door that signaled a customer had entered or exited sounded. Verity had been the last person to go and George wasn't there, which meant someone had just entered. Fred was concentrated, so he didn't bother to look up when he spoke.

"Sorry, we're already closed. Come back on Monday."

"Monday? But I'm only on town for the weekend." A _very _familiar voice said and Fred looked up in an instant, only to find Cassandra's smiling face. He left what he was doing in a second and practically ran to where she was. She left the bag she was holding carefully on the floor just before he scooped her up in his arms and hugged her tightly. She laughed and hugged him just as tight.

"I can't believe you came." He said, still holding her in his arms.

"Well," she said as they pulled apart, "at first I thought of writing you a letter, you know, telling you about how proud of you both I was..." his face lit up and she laughed. "But then I thought _Oh, what the hell, I deserve a weekend off. _So... I decided I would give you my response in person. Literally."

"Who are you talking to, Fred?" George said, his upper body covered by the boxes he was carrying. "Have you gone mental already?" He asked as he set the boxes on the floor, but as soon as he did his eyes landed on Cassandra. "Cassie!" He yelled as he saw her and she ran into his arms. "What are you doing here? _How_ did you get here?" He asked as he hugged her.

"Oh, you just missed the explanation. Too bad." He rolled his eyes, smiling. "And I got here by portkey." She looked him up and down and then turned to look at Fred. "Are these the suits I gave you?" They nodded, smiling. "Oh my God!" She said, laughing. "You've managed to make them look horrible! I didn't know it was possible!" They faked offense.

"That hurts, Cassandra." George said, drying a nonexistent tear. "We put all our effort and creativity into thinking about the nicest looking suit we can wear and you say things like this. You are such a _meanie._" She opened her mouth as if he had just said the most terrible thing.

"How dare you call me that, you big... poop!" Now it was George's turn to look dramatically offended.

"Take that back." He said, pointing a finger at her.

"Make me." She said and looked at him for a second before running to hide behind the shelves. He ran after her and Fred sighed, annoyed.

"Take it back!" He said as she ran and laughed.

"No, stay away from me! YOU. HAVE. COOTIES!" She shrieked as he catched her from behind and lifted her from the floor.

"You've stepped over the line. Get out of this shop right now." He said, suddenly serious. She laughed harder and he joined her shortly after.

When they came back to the front of the shop, Fred was looking rather irritated and his arms where crossed.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Cassandra asked, frowning, as George narrowed his eyes at him.

"Nothing." He said, waving off the question with a smile. "Where are you staying?"

"I'm renting a room at the Leaky Cauld-" she started to say but he cut her off.

"No, you're not." Fred said in a very decisive tone.

"Why staying in that ugly place when you can have our comfortable couch to sleep on?" George said with a smile.

"Well... because I can have a comfortable **bed** there and-"

"Of course you can stay with us! You don't need to ask twice!"

"I haven't even asked you once-" she said and this time Fred interrupted her, joining the conversation.

"Yes, of course George will take your stuff to the apartment, you just follow me." George nodded and went to grab the bag that was on the floor. When he saw it was moving slightly, his eyes widened.

"Cassie, what's inside this bag?" He asked, barely being able to contain the excitement on his voice.

"I'd rather if you asked _who's inside that bag..._" She said with a smile and was rewarded with a happy bark and a black head popping out of it.

And just like that, George was lost to the rest of the world.

"Yeah, I'll just take my stuff myself, he won't be any help now." Juliana said and Fred shook his head. With a wave of his wand, he closed the windows of the shop and locked the doors.

"I'll take it." Fred said and picked the now empty bag from the floor. She laughed.

"I think I can handle an empty bag." She said taking it from his hand and he smiled.

"Okay, let's go." He replied and the three walked to the stairs that led to their apartment, George on the lead with Rocko on his arms.

"Well..." Fred started as they entered the room. "It's not a big deal but..."

"This is so cool." Juliana said in awe as she walked to the window that looked to the street. "You can see all the shops from here!" She said happily and turned to smile at Fred, who smiled back, happy at her reaction.

"Are you hungry?" George asked as she sat on the couch.

"Starving." She answered, closing her eyes and leaning back.

"I can go get something, and I could also take Rocko for a walk..." George said, trying to sound casual.

"Yeah, go." Fred answered and Cassandra agreed with a nod.

"His leash is on the pocket of the backpack. I think he has to pee, so make sure he does it somewhere or he'll do it on your floor." George nodded and was gone a minute later.

"Have you been sleeping?" Fred asked with concern on his voice, sitting next to her on the couch. She sighed and opened her eyes to look at him.

"Not very well these past few days." He didn't need to ask why, he knew the reason. She leaned into his shoulder and he huddled closer, taking her hand on his and giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Are you disappointed at us?" He asked quietly, almost shy, after a while.

"Why on Earth would I be disappointed at you?" She asked, frowning.

"Because we dropped out of school." She scoffed.

"Yeah, and shortly after opened what's probably the most awesome joke shop in the world. I'm the opposite of disappointed. Why do you ask?" She said, now curious.

"Our parents are disappointed. They always wanted us to get a job at the Ministry with dad." He said, running a hand through his hair. "You know what my mother said when Ron got his prefect badge?" He asked, clearly upset. "_That's everyone in the family_. Everyone. But we weren't prefects! She just dismissed us as if we are not as important as our brothers." Cassandra sighed sadly and turned so she was hugging his middle. This sudden movement surprised him, but wasn't unwelcome.

"I'm sure that's not what she meant, Fred." She whispered, not knowing what else to say.

"I believe it is, but thanks for trying." He was silent for a while. "They..." he started to say but his voice broke. Juliana looked up to see his eyes filled with tears. She frowned and felt her own eyes starting to water too. He cleared his throat. "They didn't come today. We asked, but..." he stopped as his voice broke once again and the tears started to fall, and with his, hers did too.

"I didn't want to make you cry." He said brokenly and she cried harder, hugging him. He clung to her as tightly as she did, and he cried because she was crying and because he was sad for his own reasons, just like her.

"I love you, Fred." She said without letting go.

"I love you too, Cassie." He answered, a strange new feeling starting to build on their chests.

* * *

><p>George came back half an hour later, when they already had enough time to calm down. He had brought two boxes of pizza and a bag of dog food.<p>

They sat on the small table that was kitchen and began eating. Cassandra looked at the box deep in thought.

"This was not made by wizards." She concluded.

"Nope. I've taken the liberty to roam the streets of Muggle London. It was quite fun. I've been learning how to handle their currency." George said, looking very proud of himself. Cassandra nodded appreciatively and Fred rolled his eyes.

"Stop feeding him!" She said as George gave Rocko a small bite of his pizza. "He's already fat as it is. You're spoiling him!" He made a face at her.

"You're jealous he likes me more than you." She threw him a piece of food that hit him square on the forehead.

"He does not!" She said, looking insulted.

"He kinda does..." Fred contributed. She looked at him with her eyes wide and her mouth open. "Uh..." he said, looking nervous. George, on the other hand, was smiling smugly.

"Oh, wipe that stupid smile from your face you bloody wanker." She said and he had the nerve to laugh in her face.

"Calm down, your British is showing." Fred said, laughing with his brother.

"Ugh!" She cried out, pulling her hair but finally being unable to not laugh with them. "I hate you." She said, slamming her head on the table. The sudden noise alerted Rocko, who walked to her to see what was wrong. He stood on two legs, placing his front paws on her knees. She picked him up and he licked her face, wagging his tail happily.

"HA!" She squealed victoriously. "Like hell he likes you more." George rolled his eyes.

"What are you, five?" He asked, playing mature.

"And three quarters." She replied, sticking her tongue out at him.

* * *

><p>The next day the shop was closed, so they decided to take full advantage of the hours they had left together.<p>

"Guys..." she said as she was finishing her breakfast. They both looked at her. "How much of muggle London do you know?" They blushed.

"Not much, actually. We are familiar with the village that is close to our house, but we mostly stayed home because we didn't know how to handle ourselves alone. And we didn't see much when going to Kings Cross." George explained. "We've been venturing a little more now that we live alone but it's always somewhere close. What about you?"

"Well I know quite a lot. I've visited dozens of times. I think... I should give you a tour." She said, a mischievous smile on her face. "Get dressed." She commanded and they both went to their rooms to change.

"Are we apparating?" Fred asked as they exited the shop from the back entrance that lead to an empty alley.

"YEAH, RIGHT." She said sarcastically. "I'd rather keep my guts inside me, thank you very much. I'll take care of the transportation."

"Are we travelling by portkey?" George asked.

"Nope. Give me your hands." She said, extending hers. They frowned but took them without hesitating.

"You won't feel a thing." She assured closing her eyes.

"Wha-" They started to ask but stopped when suddenly their vision became very blurred, and the colours changed fast before their eyes. This only lasted one second, and they were in another alley before they knew what was going on.

"What the hell did just happen?" They asked at the same time as Cassandra released their hands, a very pleased smile on her face.

"Well, let's say we have our own form of Apparition." She answered and started to walk, but Fred grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"That was way too vague. How on Earth did you do that and why are we not learning how to do it?" She sighed.

"You need a higher control of your magic to be able to do that. And as I recall, you can only apparate if you have your wand with you, right? That's because it gives you a higher level of protection and control. But if you can't apparate without a one, you won't be able to do this. You can learn, as soon as you learn how to stop relying on your wand." They looked very sullen at this answer. "Oh, don't worry. Once this whole thing is over, I will be teaching you myself." She knew it was a futile attempt to cheer them up, but they smiled at her anyway.

"Where are we?" Fred asked as they followed her out of the lonely alley.

"Two blocks away from our first stop: Piccadilly Circus."

She adjusted her backpack and started to lead the way. They tried to not look to excited, but it was proving itself very difficult. They weren't used to being on a place like this one, and everything seemed fantastic.

"Wow. This place is amazing" Fred said as they reached their destination, looking up at the big signs on the buildings. "What's a _Coca Cola_?" He asked.

"It's a beverage. We can have one later. It's sweet and rather addictive." She replied. "And if you think this place is cool, wait until I take you to Times Square." She said looking at him with a smile.

"What's Times Square?" George asked. "And when do you plan on taking us there?"

"It's just a place on New York. And I plan on taking you to America as soon as I graduate. There are so many things and places I want you to see." She said, getting very excited.

"You want us to go visit you in America?" George asked, a smile on his and his brother's faces.

"Uh... yeah." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "But right now I'm studying hard and I need to focus. That's why I came here, actually. Besides wanting to be there for you on the Opening Day, even if I didn't make it on time." She said, blushing.

"Hey, you know it's okay." Fred said, moving closer to her.

"Yeah... well, it was because I'm feeling very stressed right now. It's not only because of my studies, you know what else is happening." She said and they nodded. George put his arm around her shoulders and brought her close. She hugged his waist and leaned into him.

"We should keep going." Fred said, his tone serious.

* * *

><p>The day had been amazing and so much fun. They visited places they didn't even knew that existed, and learned a lot of muggle culture from Cassandra.<p>

However, it was time for her to leave.

"Will you come again?" George asked, hopefully. She smiled sadly.

"I don't think so. Not until I finish school, I mean. And our post system can no longer work so..." She waited a few seconds before talking again. "Will you come to my graduation?" She asked fast and they blinked.

"Yes, of course." Fred said, taken aback by her request. She smiled widely.

"Really? Oh my God, that's amazing. It's on July 5. I will make sure you get a portkey." She said, excitedly.

"Where do you get so many portkeys, anyway? Are they not controlled or something?" George asked.

"Oh no, they are. But my parents know very well how to make them and the Ministry can't really tell when someone is making one." She replied with a smile.

"Wicked." They said at the same time. She looked at her watch and her expression saddened.

"I have to go." She said and hugged them both tightly.

"See you soon." They said and she smiled before disappearing in the darkness of the night.

When they were back on their flat, Fred crossed his arms and looked at his twin with a frown.

"What?" Asked George, confused.

"Do you like Cassandra?"

"Of course I like her, I wouldn't be friends with her if I didn't." He replied, avoiding the real question in purpose.

"You know what I mean." Fred said, his frown now a grave scowl.

"Oh... you mean if I like her the way **you** like her. No, she's like a sister." He replied, rolling his eyes. Fred's eyes opened wide and his mouth fell.

"I DON'T LIKE HER!" He shrieked, defensively.

"Oh, yeah. No, you're right. You don't. Sure." George said, sarcastically.

"I don't like her." Fred repeated, more calmed now.

"Whatever you say, mate." George replied, entering his room and closing the door behind him.

* * *

><p>Harry knew his last chance of letting the Order know what was going on was walking out of the door.<p>

"He's got Padfoot!" he shouted. "He's got Padfoot at the place where it's hidden!"

Snape had stopped with his hand on Umbridge's door handle.

"Padfoot?" cried Professor Umbridge, looking eagerly from Harry to Snape. "What is Padfoot? Where what is hidden? What does he mean, Snape?" Snape looked around at Harry. His face was inscrutable. Harry could not tell whether he had understood or not, but he did not dare speak more plainly in front of Umbridge.

"I have no idea," said Snape coldly. "Potter, when I want nonsense shouted at me I shall give you a Babbling Beverage. And Crabbe, loosen your hold a little, if Longbottom suffocates it will mean a lot of tedious paperwork, and I am afraid I shall have to mention it on your reference if ever you apply for a job."

He closed the door behind him with a snap, leaving Harry in a state of worse turmoil than before.

* * *

><p>When Severus was far enough, he cursed under his breath and hurried his steps to his office. Once there he contemplated the possibility of using the Floo Network to communicate to Grimmauld Place, but even if Umbridge was too preoccupied with the kids to realize what he was doing, it was a risk he was not willing to take.<p>

So he took one of the vials that was close to him and after muttering the spell, touched and was quickly transported two blocks away from the house. He was walking fast to the door, and once it appeared he opened it with his wand, slamming it against the wall.

"BLACK!" He yelled as he walked inside, his wand out.

"What the hell?" Sirius asked, appearing from the kitchen with an angry scowl on his face. "What the fuck are you doing here?" He said, taking his own wand out too.

Severus face turned into something mixed with relief and deep anger.

"I knew it was a lie." He lowly said to himself, entering the room. "Expecto Patronum!" He shouted and multiple silver does came out of his wand, each disappearing different ways. He turned to Sirius, who seemed more surprised about having seen someone conjure various Patronus at once than the fact that they were identical to Lily's. "Your _godson_," began Severus, his voice dangerous, "was tricked by the Dark Lord to believe that he had _you_ trapped in the Department of Mysteries." Sirius eyes opened wide and panic clouded his face. "Umbridge called me to her office and he was there. He found a way to tell me without her knowing what he was saying. However, I don't believe she'll be able to hold him for long. I'm _sure_ he'll find a way to get there. Wait for the members of the Order, I'll go back to the school and I'll send a message if he leaves the grounds." Sirius couldn't speak so he just nodded. Severus turned fast and was about to go when his voice stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Severus, wait." He said with no malice on his voice, and Severus was absolutely taken aback by him using his name like that. He looked at Sirius with narrowed eyes and suspicion.

"What?" Sirius opened his mouth only to close it again, not knowing how to say what he wanted. He turned away from Severus' intense gaze and he scoffed.

"I don't have time for your nonsense, Black." He said angrily and started to walk away when his voice made him stop once again.

"I'm sorry." Severus head turned slowly, his face a mix of anger and disbelief. Sirius took a few steps back. "I know it's not enough. It will never be enough. But..." he said and waited a few seconds before clearing his throat. "If I could take back everything we did to you, I would. And," He said and stopped once again, as if saying this was causing him an immense pain. "Thanks for your help."

Severus face was emotionless, but he gave him the slightest of nods before leaving the house as fast as he could.

* * *

><p>"Draco!" Severus screamed as he reached Umbridge's office, that now had the door opened wide. The boy was unconscious with the others on the floor. He kneeled down and slapped his cheeks softly in an attempt to wake him up.<p>

Draco stirred and opened his eyes slowly.

"What happened? Where are Potter and the others?" Severus asked and Draco's face morphed into pure anger and hatred.

"They got away! That stupid Weasley bitch hexed me!" He said angrily, touching his nose.

Severus cursed inwardly but his face remained impassive.

"Get up, we need to take you and the others to Madam Pomfrey." He said and Draco nodded as Severus levitated the other boys.

Once they reached the infirmary, Severus explained quickly what had happened and excused himself saying that he had to find the others.

He didn't wait until he reached his office, once he was out of the infirmary and, after he made sure no one was around, took out his wand to conjure his Patronus.

It split in two, one going to Grimmauld Place and the other to Dumbledore.

* * *

><p>Cassandra was coming down the stairs, a tired expression on her face. She walked directly to the couch and let her dead weight fall on top of it.<p>

"Cass, are you okay?" Her mother asked, laughing. Her reply was muffled by the cushion she had her face buried on. "I can't understand what you're saying."

"I DON'T WANNA STUDY ANYMORE." She said miserably, lifting her head only to bury it again once she was done.

"It will be over in less than a month, darling." Her mother said softly.

"Whatever." She said, now sitting. A few seconds later they heard someone on their backyard. This normally meant that Severus was home, but he wasn't supposed to come today. Both women stood up from their seats and walked to the kitchen, where the door was located. Severus entered the room as they appeared on the doorway.

"What happened?" Juliana asked, worried, as she took in his appearance. It didn't seem like he was hurt, but he looked worn out.

"Black is dead." He said coolly, and she gasped.

"What?" She said with her mouth agape, Cassandra mirroring her expression behind her. He then proceeded to tell them everything that had happened, from Voldemort's intrusion to Harry's mind to the Minister seeing him with his own eyes. By the end of the story, Juliana was crying and Cassandra was looking at the floor, her face emotionless.

"He apologized." Severus said a few minutes later, Juliana now huddled close to him.

"Sirius?" Cassandra asked, rubbing her eyes. Her father nodded. "What did he say?"

"That he knew it wasn't enough. And if he could take everything he did to me, he would." He replied, indifferent.

"How does that make you feel?" Juliana asked, holding his hand.

"I still haven't figured it out." He said and winced when he felt a searing pain on his forearm. He put his hand over it and both his wife and daughter gasped.

"No. No." Juliana said, her eyes filling with tears again. Severus kissed her lips softly.

"I have to go." He replied, standing up and making his way to the door. Juliana grabbed his hand and stopped him.

"When he's done, you come here first. Not anywhere else. Here. You understand?" She said seriously, her voice strained. He nodded and kissed her deeply. When they pulled away he moved to Cassandra, who was crying in silence.

She fell into his harms and hugged him tightly.

"I love you, dad." She said between sobs.

"I love you too." He said, kissing her forehead.

And without looking back, he disappeared.

* * *

><p><strong>I just wanted to make clear that when Cassie and Fred said that they loved each other, it was as friends.<strong>

**For now.**

**Review to save a life! **

**Just kidding, but you could make a teenage girl very happy.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Warning: In this chapter I have tried to find a way of justifying Severus early Death Eater actions, as opposed to canon, where he clearly fucked up. But this is here, and I have already said that this story was AU, and I've tried to make it as canon compliant as I could, but there are things I will obviously change to serve the purpose of my story.**

**Also, there are dialogues (you'll know which when you read them) that are an almost exact transcript from the book. I just changed a very little thing. So, I obviously don't own them.**

**Bolded sentences are spoken in portuguese, you know how it goes.**

* * *

><p>Severus had done terrible things. The memories of the people he had tortured haunted his nights and days, and he wasn't sure how much more of it he could take.<p>

These days he was staying at one of the cheapest rooms on the Hog's Head, and right now was drinking a rather large glass of firewhiskey. His presence was lost in the darkness of the pub, his robes black and his hair covering his face. The place was almost empty, but he had seen Albus Dumbledore enter with a strange looking woman a while ago.

With a sigh he reached to his pocket, pulling out a necklace and examining it carefully. He held it tightly in his hand for a second and then let go only to hear a small crack signaling that it had opened. Inside was a picture of himself kissing a girl. Right next to it the words "I will love you forever - J & S" were carved in a flawless handwriting.

Severus had discovered how to open Juliana's locket a year before. One dark night, after being badly tortured by Lord Voldemort, he ended up on his now abandoned childhood home, trying to recover. At first he couldn't move, so he just stayed curled up in the floor, covered in blood. Slowly he brought his hand to his neck and pulled a chain out of his shirt. He held it tightly on his trembling hand and started to cry.

On his mind, flashing images of Juliana smiling, laughing, and kissing him were plaguing his thoughts.

"I love you. I love you. I need you. I love you." He repeated again and again, his voice lower than a whisper. After a few seconds, he felt a small pressure on the hand that was holding the locket, and opened it only to find out that it was no longer closed. He frowned, and brought his other hand to open it completely. What was inside felt like a stab to his heart.

The picture that Juliana had taken of both of them kissing on Christmas Break was inside, something he couldn't quite read now written on the other side.

"_Only love will set you free._" He repeated out loud and even cracked a smile. "You clever girl." He said and closed the locket, a newfound strength filling his body.

But now that moment was long gone, and he wasn't sure if he could keep this going. He wanted to live, he _dreamed _with the day The Dark Lord was defeated so he could try to find her and _maybe _they could be together again.

He didn't finish his drink. He just paid for it and decided to go back to his room. On his way there, however, the loud sound of a weird voice catched his attention. He looked at the door. If he recalled correctly, it was where Dumbledore had gone with the strange woman.

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... _" He heard before he was roughly pulled away from the door by the owner of the place.

"What do you think you're doing, eavesdropping like a filthy rat?" He asked, anger clear on his voice, before he threw him out of the pub. "Don't you dare to come back here, slimy bastard." He said before closing the door on his face.

But Severus had heard enough. There was someone who was going to be able to defeat Voldemort... that meant there was still hope. He was roughly pulled from his thoughts by the burning feeling of the Dark Mark on his forearm. He panicked. _I can't let him know this, _he thought desperately. But his Occlumency skill was not fully developed, and it barely helped him hide his memories of Juliana and Lily.

With his inner turmoil growing bigger by the second, he apparated from the place.

* * *

><p>This was, it seemed, a gathering for bringing new information to Voldemort. He was seeing people begging for mercy as they were tortured because they didn't have anything that interested him. He was having difficulty with getting a grip of his thoughts, and this was making him feel more and more anxious. He tried to not show it, but it was becoming very hard.<p>

"Severus." He heard _his_ voice say, and walked to him, trying to not succumb to the pressure he was feeling. He bowed in front of him and kissed his feet. "Severus... you've proven yourself a very reliable follower, your potions have been of great use for our cause." Voldemort said, his voice low and terrifying. "However, you know I expect the best my followers can give me, and your potions are not enough anymore. You agree with me, I assume." He said, not giving room for a negative answer.

"Of course, my Lord." Severus replied, not looking up.

"Look at me." Voldemort ordered and Severus didn't hesitate to obey. However, he regretted it in an instant, when he felt him invading his mind without a warning. He reacted purely by instinct and put his most recent memories on the front of his mind, Juliana and Lily going to the back to keep them safe.

The problem was that his last memory were his last moments on the Hog's Head.

Voldemort exited his mind with so much force that he fell to the ground, hitting his head hard on the stone floor. He felt dizzy but was able to focus his eyesight again for a second, only to see Voldemort's evil red eyes looking more furious than ever. After that, everything disappeared.

* * *

><p>Severus was running, out of breath, to the place he was meeting Dumbledore.<p>

Voldemort had discovered a baby that reunited the qualities the prophecy. The boy was Harry Potter, son of James Potter and... Lily Evans.

He had hated himself with so much force as he did in that moment only two times before in his life: when he was fifteen and had lost the only friend he had because of saying such a _stupid_ word, and when he had lost the love of his life because his _friends _had found out she was in love with him.

He had already made a mistake with Lily before, but this one was much worse. Her life was at stake, and it was his own fault. He had tried to persuade Voldemort to not kill _her_, at least, because he knew the baby had a sealed fate already, and even if it was a dark and evil thought, **he wanted James Potter to die**. He wanted him to pay for what he had done to him, for being one of the worst humans that had ever set a foot on Hogwarts and despite that, being loved by everyone.

But it hadn't worked. Voldemort was not going to spare Lily. And even if he decided to do it, she was going to protect her baby until it got her killed.

So, he only had one more option.

He reached the hilltop, wand on his hand, and looked around desperately, trying to find him. The wind was loud and his hair was making it difficult for him to see clearly. His breath was labored, panic consuming him. _What if he doesn't come? _His mind screamed.

Suddenly, he saw a white light and his wand was gone from his hand. He dropped to his knees and lifted his arms, trying to show that he didn't mean any harm.

"Don't kill me!" He begged.

"That was not my intention." Dumbledore said, his tone serene but very dangerous. His wand was pointing at him, a bright light coming from the tip, illuminating both of their faces. "Well, Severus? What message does Lord Voldemort have for me?"

"No—no message— I'm here on my own account!" He replied, twisting his hands together to avoid them from trembling. "I— I come with a warning—no, a request—please—" Severus said, his voice shaking. Dumbledore flicked his wand and the loud sound of the wind disappeared.

"What request could a Death Eater make of me?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes narrowed. Severus winced at his cold tone.

"The— the prophecy... the prediction... Trelawney..." He said, failing to find the right words.

"Ah, yes," Dumbledore said, his tone unchanged. "How much did you relay to Lord Voldemort?" Severus felt a pang of pain on his chest only by remembering that night.

"He knows everything—everything I heard!" He answered, deciding that explaining on detail what had happened was a waste of precious time and Dumbledore was not going to believe him anyway. "That is why—it is for that reason—he thinks it means Lily Evans!" He screamed, his tone bordering madness.

"The prophecy did not refer to a woman," Dumbledore replied, calmly. "It spoke of a boy born at the end of July—" Severus interrupted him, shaking his head.

"You know what I mean! He thinks it means her son, he is going to hunt her down—kill them all—" he cried out, his whole body trembling.

"If she means so much to you," Dumbledore began, "surely Lord Voldemort will spare her? Could you not ask for mercy for the mother, in exchange for the son?" he finished, his words filled with so much venom that he felt more frightened than ever before.

"I have— I have asked him—" Severus explained, and when he saw his repulsed expression he realized his choice of words had been very poor.

"You disgust me." he said and he could feel the hate he was feeling towards him. He winced and hunched.

"You do not care, then, about the deaths of her husband and child?" He tried to convince him, not worrying about the tears that were building on his eyes.

"They can die, as long as you have what you want?" Dumbledore asked and Severus kept silent. _Did he want that?_ He didn't care about James Potter getting killed, and he couldn't help but imagine the baby as the reminder of the fact that she had married the man that had made his teenage years a** living hell**. However, deep inside him he knew that he didn't want anything that would make Lily unhappy to happen. And that meant her son staying alive, and of course, her husband as well._  
><em>

"Hide them all, then," he managed to say. "Keep her— _them_— safe. Please." He begged.

"And what will you give me in return, Severus?" He was surprised at this question.

"In—in return?" He asked, and stayed silent for a few moments. _I owe it to her, this is all my fault. _"Anything."

* * *

><p>Juliana was finishing Cassandra's birthday cake, all while the little girl looked at everything she did with an awestruck smile.<p>

She couldn't help but smile every time her eyes fell on her small frame. She reminder her so much of Severus. She sighed sadly, but smiled anyway.

"**Mommy...**" Cassie said in a small voice after a while, looking down at the floor.

"**Yes, my love? What's wrong?**" She asked and walked to her, fearing she had hurt herself.

"**Is daddy coming today?**" Juliana felt a deep pain on her chest and resisted the urge to start crying. She managed to smile and picked her up. Cassandra laid her head on her shoulder.

"**I don't think so, darling. He's very busy now.**" She replied, her voice about to break.

"**Okay.**" The little girl said, her tone soft and somewhat resigned.

"**Hey! Why don't we go visit grandma before your party!**" She said, trying to cheer her up. It worked.

"**Yes!**" She yelled, clapping her hands.

* * *

><p>The party consisted of mostly family and some of the kids from the neighborhood, but it was enough to make Cassie have the time of her short life.<p>

Juliana was talking to her mother when she saw Teresa running fast to where she was, a wide smile on her face.

"**JULIANA!**" She cried out and grabbed her hand. "**Come! Come!**" She said, pulling her as she ran. Juliana frowned.

"**What happened?**" She asked but wasn't worried, the smile on her Teresa's face told her it was nothing bad. She led her to the backyard, where Cassandra was running happily on the grass, chasing her older cousins.

"**Look what happens when she steps over the grass.**" She said, pointing at the spot where her daughter had just been. Juliana's eyes opened wide, and she smiled, incredulous. On every part of the grass that Cassie had stepped on little flowers were growing at an alarming speed.

"**MOM! MOM! COME SEE THIS!**" Juliana shouted, unable to contain the excitement on her voice.

"**What is it?**" Isabel asked, appearing on the doorway. Juliana only pointed at Cassie, her eyes filled with happy tears. Her mother opened her eyes and smiled widely too. "**Her first signs of magic.**" She said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Soon everyone was outside marveling on what was happening. Cassie didn't understand what was going on but welcomed the attention anyway.

* * *

><p>By now it was already nighttime, and Juliana was helping Cassie put her pajamas on.<p>

"**The pictures?**" She asked, hopeful. _It's still her birthday, I can't say no._ Juliana thought and nodded. Cassie squealed in excitement.

"**I'll be right back.**" She said and walked to her bedroom to get her photo album. When she found it, she looked at the _S _and_ J _on the cover_, _identical to the one she gave Severus for his birthday. She sighed, but walked to Cassandra's bedroom with a smile on her face.

Juliana laid on the bed with her, her small head resting on her chest. She always looked at the pictures with a dreamy look on her face. When they finished, Cassie looked up at her.

"**Mommy, I love daddy very much.**" Juliana smiled and kissed her forehead.

"**Me too.**"

* * *

><p>After Cassie had fallen asleep, Juliana went downstairs to the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea. Right now she was looking at it, but her mind was elsewhere. She sighed, tiredly, and rubbed her eyes.<p>

When she was about to turn the lights off and go to bed, she heard a loud knocking on her front door. She frowned and looked at the clock on the wall. _1 a.m. What could anyone possibly want now? _She asked herself as he made her way to the door.

"Juliana, open up!" She heard a loud male voice say.

"**Uncle Henry?**" She asked to herself, walking faster. When she opened, she saw him looking very tousled. He also looked very... _excited?_ "What the hell are you doing here?" She asked, confused. "Weren't you working in Ireland for the week?"

"He's dead, Juliana. Voldemort's dead." He said and she felt like a bucket of frozen water had fallen over her head.

"What?" She asked, her face cold as stone.

"HE'S DEAD! HE DIED! HE WAS KILLED BY A BABY! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!" He said, entering the house. Juliana didn't move from her spot on the door. "Harry Potter. That's his name. His parents were killed but when he tried to kill him... BAM! HE COULDN'T!" _Potter. _**Potter**. Something clicked in her head and she turned quickly to face him.

"Did you say Potter?" Her uncle nodded. Her heart started beating faster and faster and she felt herself about to have a panic attack. "What was the name of the mother?" She asked, desperate.

"Ugh," he said, trying hard to remember. "L...It started with an L, I know..."

"Lily Evans?" She asked, her voice strained.

"Yes! Lily Evans, well, she was Lily Potter." He replied.

"Oh God." She said and suddenly felt very dizzy. Her knees shook and she held onto the door for support.

"Juliana!" Henry said and moved to catch her. "Are you okay?" he asked, worried.

"Yeah, I just... it's a lot to take in." She lied. He nodded and brought her a glass of water. She drank it in two large gulps.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked, doubtfully.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm very tired, you know Cassie's birthday was today." She half lied again and he nodded. "Go with your wife and daughter, they missed you. I'll be fine." He seemed unsure but finally accepted.

Once he was gone, Juliana let her emotions overtook her. She started crying hard, her whole body trembling. There was only one person plaguing her thoughts. _How is he feeling? He must be devastated. _

A few minutes later a thought so horrifying crossed her mind that she gasped out loud.

_Is he still alive?_

* * *

><p>Severus didn't care how he looked at the moment, wailing and crying in front of Albus Dumbledore.<p>

"I thought... you were going... to keep her... safe..." He managed to say between sobs.

"She and James put their faith in the wrong person," Dumbledore began, his tone dark. "Rather like you, Severus. Weren't you hoping that Lord Voldemort would spare her?" He didn't bother to answer. "Her boy survives," He said and Severus moved his head, dismissing him. "Her son lives. He has her eyes, precisely her eyes. You remember the shape and color of Lily Evans's eyes, I am sure?" He asked softly and Severus felt anger build inside him.

"DON'T!" He screamed. _How could I do this to her, I killed her. I killed her. _He repeated in his mind. "Gone... dead..." He cried.

"Is this remorse, Severus?"

"I wish... I wish I were dead..." _It should've been me instead of you. Innocent Lily. I killed you._

"And what use would that be to anyone?" Dumbledore said, not even a hint of pity on his voice. "If you loved Lily Evans, if you truly loved her, then your way forward is clear." Severus looked up, confused.

"What—what do you mean?"

"You know how and why she died. Make sure it was not in vain. Help me protect Lily's son." He shook his head.

"He does not need protection. The Dark Lord has gone—" But he knew that was a lie the moment it rolled off his tongue.

"The Dark Lord will return, and Harry Potter will be in terrible danger when he does." Dumbledore interrupted.

Severus kept quiet for a few minutes, trying to get a hold of himself. He took a deep breath and made a decision. _I owe it to her, I must pay this debt. _He repeated to himself.

"Very well. Very well. But never—never tell, Dumbledore! This must be between us! Swear it! I cannot bear... especially Potter's son... I want your word!" He screamed, the simple thought of _his mistake, his fault, the fact that Lily's blood was on his hands_, to come out was enough to drive him to the edge of his self control.

"My word, Severus, that I shall never reveal the best of you?" _The best of me? There are things not even **you** know, old man. _And just the thought of _her, _was enough to duplicate the pain he was feeling. "If you insist..."

* * *

><p>"<strong>I'm coming back very soon, okay baby?<strong>" Juliana said to Cassandra as she prepared to leave. Her daughter nodded without asking any questions, and she hugged her tightly.

"Juliana, are you sure this is the best thing to do?" Isabel asked in English.

"Mom, I need to know what happened to him. I'm sure Albus Dumbledore is my best option. I'll just send him a letter and I'll wait for him to reply. Once he does and if he accepts to arrange a meeting, I will be picking her up." She was talking fast and her hands were shaking so bad she couldn't close the zip of her jacket. Her mother did it for her.

"Good luck." She said and Juliana hugged her. She touched the portkey and was gone before they could blink.

Juliana landed close to a small cottage with an owlery that was just a few miles away from Scotland.

She walked to the front desk and asked the old woman behind it if she could rent an owl. The woman nodded kindly and explained the prices and types of owls they had.

"I just want one that goes mostly unnoticed." The woman nodded and showed her a brown owl that was perched up high on the wall. Juliana paid and attached the letter to the owl's leg.

"I'd like to rent a room." She said to the lady once she was back.

* * *

><p>Albus Dumbledore was sitting on his office alone, looking disgruntled. He was deep in thought, his eyes reflecting all the years he had lived and the many things he had seen.<p>

_Tic, tic, tic._

He looked up to his window only to see a brown owl waiting outside. He walked forward and opened it, removing the letter from its leg. The owl flew inside and perched up on a table, clearly waiting for his response.

_Professor Dumbledore_

_I must excuse myself if this letter is poorly written or too informal, but there is an urgent matter I need to discuss with you and I can't allow myself any formalities._

_I need to meet you to ask you about a very significant subject, and I also require your help._

_I am currently waiting for your answer, if you accept to meet please state the place and time on it._

_Regards_

_Juliana Souza_

He read the letter two more times, searching for something on his mind that could possibly tell him what would Juliana Souza want from him. He found nothing. But he wasn't for denying his help to someone who asked it, so he quickly scribbled an answer.

_Miss Souza,_

_I will gladly offer you my help with any matter that I can assist you with. Nevertheless, your request was immensely vague. I would have liked to prepare myself better for our encounter._

_I will gladly meet you tomorrow at 9 a.m. at the Leaky Cauldron. I've taken the liberty to assume that what concerns you is a matter that must be discussed privately, so I will meet you in the room 25. Once you get there, knock three times._

_I look forward to our meeting._

_Albus Dumbledore_

* * *

><p>Juliana got her answer barely two hours later. She took her bag and told the nice old lady whose name she didn't bother to ask that she was already leaving, but insisted on paying for the room anyway.<p>

She walked to the place her portkey had taken her and touched it once again.

Once she arrived to her house, she walked up the stairs and prepared some of Cassie's clothes and toys along with some of hers and both of their toothbrushes on her bag. She closed her eyes and appeared on her mother's backyard. They weren't there, so she walked inside.

"**You're already back.**" Her mother said, surprised. Cassie was sleeping peacefully on the couch.

"**Yes. We're meeting him tomorrow at 9 a.m. London time, 6 a.m. Rio time.**" She sat on a chair and covered her face with her hands.

"**Are you sure you want to take Cassandra?**" Her mother asked and she nodded.

"**I need to take her. Severus was on the bad side, mom. I don't know what I will be facing, I don't need him thinking that I agree with Voldemort's beliefs or something. She gives me a reason for wanting to know about him.**" Isabel nodded.

"**Do you want to wake her up?**" She asked and Juliana shook her head.

"**Let her sleep. She'll need it tomorrow.**"

But Cassandra woke up ten minutes later and didn't feel asleep until it was very late. She was very excited about traveling when she did, but when her mother tried to wake her up at 5 a.m. she wasn't so excited anymore. Juliana gave her a bath and dressed her on warm clothes and a wool hat. Ten minutes before it was the time to meet Albus, Juliana picked up Cassie.

"**Hold on tightly, this won't feel nice, but it won't be long, I promise.**" Cassandra nodded with her face buried on her neck.

Juliana looked at her daughter to see if she was feeling like throwing up or crying once they arrived to their destination, only to see that she had fallen asleep.

She walked to the Leaky Cauldron once she was inside went directly to the room area without even bothering to speak to anyone.

Once she reached the room 25 she looked at her watch and waited until it signaled it was six o'clock. Well, nine o'clock. When it did, she knocked three times.

The door was opened a few seconds later and she was greeted by the sight of her old headmaster looking at her with a curious twinkle on his eyes.

"Sorry, she fell asleep." Juliana said, apologizing. "Do you mind if I..." she asked, pointing at the bed inside the room.

"Please." Dumbledore said, inviting her in. She placed her daughter on the bed carefully and walked to sit with him on the table.

"She is your daughter, I presume?"

"Yes." She nodded. "That's part of the reason I'm here." Dumbledore urged her to go on. She took a deep breath and began talking. "When I received the news of Lord Voldemort's demise, I felt the urge to communicate with you. See, professor..." She said and he lifted his hand.

"Call me Albus, please. You're not a student anymore." She nodded.

"Albus, I must apologize to you." He raised an eyebrow. "I am aware that you must remember me mostly because of the attack I was victim of three years ago." She was silent for a few seconds. "After I woke up you asked me questions, and I... wasn't honest." Dumbledore's face showed no surprise at all.

"Oh yes, I am aware of that. I have the knowledge of the people who attacked you, as well. But I was never able to use this piece of information due to the fact that you refused to point anyone. I always wondered why. It was no surprise that many Slytherins were not fond of you. You had a different culture, a different way of practicing magic, and in addition, you were sorted in the house they despised more than any other. I feared an attack was going to happen, however I must admit I never thought you were going to roam the halls alone at night, which proved itself the very reason why I wasn't able to stop it. And I only found out about the rumour of you being in love with Severus Snape when it was too late. I must apologize, too." Juliana gaped at his answer, frowning deeply.

"That's not... you mean..." Something clicked on her mind. "Oh God. You don't know." She said, covering her mouth with her hand. Dumbledore actually looked surprised, and she thought there were probably just a handful of people who had the privilege of seeing that expression on his face.

"I beg your pardon?" He said and when she was about to answer she felt something poking on her leg. She looked down and saw her daughter looking at her curiously. She was still so short that the only thing that could be seen of her from over the table were her eyes. Albus was looking at the little girl attentively. Juliana picked her up and sat her on her lap so she could face him.

"Albus, this is Cassandra." She said, taking the little girl's hat only to reveal a mane of messy jet black hair. "**Say **hello** baby.**"

"_Hullow._" The little girl said with a smile, making eye contact with him, and Albus' eyes widened instantly.

_Those eyes. _

Cassandra's eyes were identical to another pair of eyes he had been seeing very often lately. The only difference was that the eyes he was looking at now where filled with wonder, happiness and an innocent brightness. The eyes he had grown accustomed to were tired and only filled with pain and sorrow, looking much more older than they were.

_Oh._

Juliana Souza being in love with Severus Snape hadn't been a rumour at all, it had been a fact. And apparently, _he had loved her back?_ All those years without knowing without what had really happened, believing something else entirely. _Juliana Souza was probably attracted to his intelligence and ability at potion making, a subject she herself excelled on. Severus, appalled by the thought of someone like her liking him had rejected her love and probably helped to plan the attack. After all, he only had eyes for Lily Evans. _That was the truth he had been inclined to believe for years, confirmed when he found out that Severus had told Voldemort about the prophecy. But now he knew that it wasn't a truth at all, it was no more than a deluded belief.

"The night I was attacked, it wasn't only because they thought I was in love with Severus. There was **one** person in the group of people who attacked me, the one who planned everything, that knew the truth. He found out that Severus and I were dating, and used this knowledge to lure him into joining Voldemort's ranks."

"_Avery._" He supplied, nodding once. It was no secret that he had been highly rewarded by Voldemort when he took Severus to him. By then Severus was more than extremely talented at potions, and that kind of skill was something Voldemort desired with passion and always welcomed with open arms.

"The night of the attack," Juliana continued, "we were together. That's why I was alone at night. We used the Room of Requirement. One of us would go first, the other would follow about half an hour later. We had done this dozens of times already, I never thought something like that could happen." She said, rubbing her eyes with one hand. "We were always careful, but the potion I was drinking had to be taken _after._" She said, without needing to clarify what she meant. "I never made it to my room." She finished, hugging her daughter tightly and kissing the top of her head. The little girl smiled, oblivious to what was happening.

They were silent for a long time, Albus taking in everything she had said.

"How, I must ask, did Avery found about you? Do you know?" She sighed deeply.

"I didn't know at first, and I spent a long time searching through my memories for something we could have done that gave us away. I didn't find anything like that. But there was one thing I reckon was probably the cause." She took a deep breath. "Sirius Black knew about us." Dumbledore's face turned cold in a second at the sound of that name. "He had this map... I'm sure you know about it." Dumbledore nodded curtly. "We must have appeared together in it several times, because one night he followed us. I... _made _him promise to not say anything to anyone, and I'm sure he didn't. That wasn't how Avery found out." She kept quiet for a few minutes, trying to find the strength to speak. "I was coming back alone from Hogsmeade one day, not long before I was attacked. He was drunk. He tried to kiss me, but I refused." Dumbledore had a hard look on his face. "He said something about me and Severus being Hogwarts happiest couple. I don't remember it exactly... but he made clear that we were dating. I thought no one was around to hear him but... I couldn't be sure."

"Don't worry about Sirius Black, he will be paying for his crimes very soon." Albus said, his voice emotionless.

"What?" Juliana asked, confused.

"There is so much you don't know..." he began and she rolled her eyes.

"What happened to Severus? Is he alive?" She blurted out.

Dumbledore looked at her for a long time, and began telling her what had happened. When he was done talking, Cassandra had fallen asleep and Juliana was crying inconsolably.

"He told you? He **said** that he had told Voldemort about the prophecy?" She asked, sobbing.

"He made it quite clear, my dear." She shook her head, refusing to believe it.

"Something's not right." She said, frowning and looking down. "I need to see him. I need to talk to him, Albus. He needs to know about her." She said, looking at Cassie's sleeping form on the bed.

"I must ask you to wait, dear. Just until after the trials are done." She looked very unwilling to do this, but finally accepted. "I have to warn you, Juliana. He is not the man you remember. He has seen and done too many things to still have his soul intact. His spirit is... I dare not say irreparably but... gravely broken. The guilt of Lily's death is eating him alive." She started trembling as she began crying again. "You still love him?" He asked and she looked up, disbelief written on her features.

"Do you really need to ask?" She didn't speak for a while, trying to calm down. Once she recovered, she looked at him. "Are you going to help me?" He nodded.

"His trial will probably be done by the end of the month. I will keep in touch with you. I strongly advice that you move to Scotland for some time, or the communication will become more difficult. I can provide you a house if you need it." She shook her head.

"No, thank you. You've done enough for me already."

"Juliana... you surely understand I need to make sure none of what we talked about today leaves this room." She nodded. "We are not able to make and Unbreakable Vow without a third party, but I am aware that there is an ancient Brazilian oath we could be able to perform." She nodded again and stood up from her chair.

"You need to make a deep cut on the palm of both of our hands." She extended hers and he pointed his wand at her. There was no pain at all, and she was grateful. He did the same to his and she held it tightly on hers, their blood mixing together. She closed her eyes and a blue light filtered from the recesses of their fingers. "**On my blood I swear I shall not reveal any of the matters spoken on this conversation, or my life will be taken from me after I say the first word.**" After that the light was gone, along with the cuts on their hands.

"I'll send you an owl as soon as we're settled." She said, picking Cassandra up from the bed. Albus nodded and she left.

* * *

><p><strong>Teresa appeared on chapter 10, as Juliana's 4 year old cousin who was in love with Severus.<strong>

**Henry also appeared on chapter 10, as Juliana's aunt American husband.**


	21. Chapter 21

**It's been almost a week! Sorry!**

**Okay, I have slightly bad news for all the people who read this story.**

**I start college on monday, this means I won't have too much time to write chapters. HOWEVER I'm not leaving this story or anything, and I assure you I already have all important plot points of the remaining chapters written, meaning that I already know what's supposed to happen, I just need to write it.**

**So, I won't leave this story unfinished because I don't know how to keep going.**

** I won't leave this story unfinished, period. **

**I wanted to clarify that.**

**In other news, thanks to **_kytpu3426 _**for the follow and favorite! And thanks to **_readingaddict24 _**for reviewing again, and if you want to leave any kind of advice on how I could improve my chapters, it's more than welcome!**

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><p>"Mom, this is horrible." Cassandra said, her face scrunched up in displeasure.<p>

"It's not horrible." Her mother replied, her head tilted to the side.

"It is horrible." Severus confirmed, moving to stand behind his wife.

In front of the three, a bright violet gown was hanging on Cassandra's bedroom door. It had two silver lines on the bottom, with the school emblem (a black cat's silhouette) embroidered on the right.

"Zip it, it's so bright I'm gonna go blind." Juliana rolled her eyes and closed the bag the gown was in.

"I could wear the bag instead." Cassandra suggested and her mother directed a cold look at her. "Okay, it was just a suggestion." Severus laughed quietly behind her.

"It's just a few hours, Cass." Juliana said, exiting the bedroom, Cassandra and Severus behind her. "You get to wear whatever you want underneath."

"Whatever I want?" She smiled mischievously. "I'll wear nothing, then." This time Severus looked at her coldly. "FINE! I'll stop with the suggestions!" She said, exasperated.

"What time is it, though? Fred and George are supposed to be here at noon." Cassandra asked, excitement on her voice. Severus looked at his watch.

"Noon." He replied and a second later they heard two loud thuds coming from the backyard, followed by a series of groans. "Right on time." He said as Cassandra ran to greet them.

"Be nice." Juliana warned him, kissing his cheek. He grabbed her waist and pulled her closer.

"I'm always nice." He replied, a smirk on his face, before kissing her deeply.

* * *

><p>"Hey!" Cassie exclaimed as she walked to the twins, that were beginning to get up. They dusted themselves off and she hugged them at the same time.<p>

"How are you preparing for the big day?" George teased. She huffed.

"Don't remind me. Wait till you see what I have to wear." She cringed. "Come inside, are you hungry? I haven't had lunch yet, maybe we can go somewhere and I can show you around!" She said, smiling.

She grabbed both of their hands and dragged them to the door. Once they entered, the imposing figure of Severus Snape, serious as always, greeted them. Granted, he was still dressed in dark clothing, but he was wearing a shirt with the sleeves rolled up and he had no robes that made him look like darkness itself was coming behind him.

Next to him, Juliana was standing with a smile. They contrast between both of them was so intense that Fred and George couldn't take their eyes away from the scene.

"Hello boys," Juliana said brightly and Severus merely nodded. "How have you been?"

"Fine, thank you." They both replied shyly.

"Don't bother to try and diffuse the tension mom. We're already leaving. I'll be right back." She said to the twins and started to walk to the stairs, but stopped mid-step and turned around. "You know what, better come with me." She said, looking at her father with suspicion. The twins let out relieved sighs and followed her upstairs.

"They're so scared of you!" Juliana said to Severus, laughing and scolding him at the same time.

"I didn't say anything." He retorted, crossing his arms.

"You don't have to! You have this whole dark, dangerous..." she said and her mind started to drift away "sexy demeanor... God, it's so hot in here." She said, flustered. He smiled and pulled her close.

"Sexy, huh?" He asked, smirking. She rolled her eyes but moved her arms to circle his waist. He leaned in until his lips were almost touching hers.

"The kids could catch us," she whispered, huskily.

"Thrilling, isn't it?" He asked in the same tone before closing the distance between them and kissing her thoroughly.

* * *

><p>"What is this?" Fred asked, pointing at Cassandra's desk. "Looks like a telly."<p>

"It's a computer." She answered as she put her sneakers on. "Um... it can be used as a way of communicating, you can search stuff..." She tried to explain simply. He just raised his eyebrows but didn't ask anything else.

"Hey, that's us!" George said with a smile, pointing at a framed picture on her wall. It had been taken the last time she had visited them. Cassie smiled and Fred moved to take a look at it. When he saw it, he smiled too. He then moved to her door, where the gown was carefully kept. He opened the zip and smiled.

"This is amazing!" He told her, laughing. George looked at it and raised his eyebrows before he started laughing too.

"It's not! It's horrible!" She yelled, mortified.

"This is one of the most beautiful pieces of clothing I've ever laid my eyes upon." Fred said, dramatically.

"Ha. Close it." She said and he did, a smile still on his face.

George moved now to her bookcase. He started touching the spines of the books, a frown on his face.

"Peter Pan..." He started to read out loud. "Frankenstein, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Dracula, Romeo and Juliet, J. R. R. Tolkien, no, wait, that was the author. Are all these muggle books?" He asked, looking at her. She nodded. "What are they about?" He asked, pulling her copy of Frankenstein and skimming through the pages.

"They all have a short summary on the back." She answered and he turned it around. He raised an eyebrow, interested.

"Can I borrow it?" He asked and she smiled, surprised.

"Sure. Take as many as you like. Okay, ready to go?" She asked, and they nodded.

"Where's Rocko?" George asked as they left the house by the front door.

"He was taking a nap on the living room just before you arrived, I guess he's still there." He looked disappointed. "You'll get to see him later. Now, follow me, I'm starving."

They made her way to a small dining room in the center of the town, while Cassandra told them stories about every place they walked by. Once they got there, she motioned them to go sit on a table and walked to the counter.

A girl about her age greeted her happily, and she leaned over the counter to say something on her ear. The girl's eyes widened instantly and she looked to where Fred and George were. She blushed when she saw they were looking too and averted her eyes immediately. Cassie laughed out loud and walked to the table.

"What did you say to her?" George asked, curious.

"Nothing important." She vaguely answered, a smile on her lips. She took one of the menus that were on the table and they did the same. "I'm just gonna have a hamburger and fries with a coke, don't know about you." She said without looking up.

"The same." They answered at the same time.

"Okay." She said as the girl from the counter approached them, a small notebook and pen on her hands, and her face completely red.

"Have you decided what are you going to eat?" She asked shyly.

"The usual. For the three." Cassandra answered. "This is Amy, guys." She introduced the girl, who blushed even more if that was possible. "She goes to school with me. Amy, These are Fred," she said pointing at the twin on the left, "and George."

"Pleased to meet you." They said at the same time.

"Oh my God, you really do the thing." She whispered, amazed, and Cassie bit her lip to control her laughter.

"Sorry?" George asked.

"Nothing." She said quickly. "I'll bring your orders soon." She said and left as fast as humanly possible without running.

"What are you laughing at?" Fred asked her with a frown. She put her palm on her cheek to avoid looking suspicious. Of course, it only made it worse.

"Laughing? Who's laughing?" She asked fast, resisting the urge with so much difficulty that her face now contorted in pain.

"What did you say to her?" They asked at the same time, their eyes narrowed.

By now she was covering her mouth with her hand and was shaking badly, her eyes burning with unshed tears. She tried to compose herself, but a smile was still etched on her face when she finally did.

"Today? I only told her you were Fred and George. Before that... well, that's another story." She said mischievously.

Amy returned with three plates and three drinks on a tray.

"Here you go." She said, placing the food in front of them. "Enjoy." She said with a smile and turned to leave, when a voice stopped.

"Hey, Amy..." George said, slowly. She turned with her eyes opened wide.

"Huh?" She managed to say, her voice high pitched.

"What has Cassie told you about us?" He asked, looking at her on the eyes. One more time, Amy blushed madly.

"Nothing." She answered way too fast. "I have to work,_ enjoyyourfoodbye_." She said and disappeared inside the kitchen.

"Look at you, you just spoke and she's already traumatized!" Fred said, teasing. He looked at Cassandra. "Really, why is she acting like that?"

Cassandra ate her burger calmly without giving them a response. They rolled their eyes and started eating too. Once she was finished, she finally spoke.

"Remember all those joke items I sent you for Christmas, and the book?" They nodded, failing to see what that had to do with anything. "Well, Amy's father is the owner of the shop where I got it from." They both opened their eyes and raised their eyebrows at this. "He opened it 20 years ago. Amy grew up there, and she developed an unconditional love for pranks and jokes. Just like her father. So, guess what. When I found out, I told her all about these friends I had that also loved pranking! She thought it was cool, but really didn't care too much at first. Until." She said and stopped talking.

"Until what!" They both yelled. She smiled.

"Well, her dad is a wizard but... he always felt more attracted to muggle pranks rather than wizard pranks. That's not her case. You know, she even travelled to Scotland five times only to visit Zonko's. She is obsessed with the making and building part of it." They leaned back, surprised at this new information. "So, she is pretty aware of all the news of the magical pranking business and stuff. Which means that the fact that this amazing new shop called _Weasley Wizard Wheezes_ opened in London didn't go unnoticed. So she comes to me, asking me the names of those friends I had that loved pranks. I wish you could've seen her face when I told her. It was so pale, you could've seen through it. So, I tell her: You know Amy, once they come and visit, I will introduce you to them. She didn't believe me. And then, today happened."

"Bloody hell." George said. "What you're trying to say is, she's a fan?" Cassandra nodded.

"Basically, yeah." Cassie rolled her eyes playfully at the smug expressions that appeared on their faces.

"Like you're surprised. You've seen how much people love your shop." She said.

"I mean, yeah..." George began. "But... it's not the same. They like the products, they don't put much thought on the people who made them or how they did... This is different... surprising. That's all." George replied, scratching the back of his neck thoughtfully.

"I suppose that makes sense." She reasoned with a nod. She turned her head back and laughed quietly. Amy was peering through the door, only her eyes visible. When she caught her eye, she disappeared. "She's so excited." She told them with a smile. Suddenly, her face brightened with a newfound idea. "Oh God, I know what we're doing next! We are going to her dad's shop! Her shifts ends in..." she looked at her watch "half an hour. She helps him when she gets out of here. Oh my God! She's gonna freak out."

"I don't know if you're doing this because you're nice or because you like to see the girl getting embarrassed." Fred teased with a smile. She made a face at him and then shrugged her shoulders.

"Bit of both."

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><p>A big sign that read <strong>JACKSON'S JOKING EMPORIUM<strong> was hanging above a large wooden door with glass windows.

Several products were displayed on the window, ranging from small prank items to elaborated costumes.

"Wow." The twins said at the same time.

"Is it open?" George asked, impatient. Cassandra pointed at a small poster on the glass. _Open every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. _

"Come on." She said and opened the door, a bell similar to theirs signaling that it had been opened.

She shop was empty at the moment, something that would only happen on hours like this one. The twins marvelled at the enormity of the place, and amount of the things it had. Their minds were running wildly, creating, imagining, thinking of how this or that product could be transformed into something else.

They heard footsteps and a man about 50 years old appeared from the back of the shop, a box on his hands.

"Jack!" Cassandra greeted him and walked to hug him. "How've you been?"

"Everything's going great!" He answered cheerfully. His eyes landed on Fred and George and his his widened. "Are they...?" He asked and she nodded, excitedly. He walked to them and shook both of their hands with great enthusiasm. "I cannot believe it! Fred and George Weasley on **MY **shop!" He said, laughing. They just stood there, not knowing what to do. "I must take record this moment." He said seriously, clasping his hands. "Cassandra, would you take us a picture? If they don't mind, of course." He said to them. They shook their heads, still quiet.

Cassie was biting her lip to avoid laughing out loud. She picked up the camera from a shelf and motioned them to get together. Jack situated himself in the middle, a bright smile on his face. The twins were silent, their faces void of emotions.

"Smile a bit, will you?" She said, rolling her eyes. They snapped out of their trance and smiled, the picture coming out perfect.

"Ohhhh..." Jack said excitedly turning to look at them. "This one's going to the wall!"

"Um, sir..." Fred asked, frowning. "Not to sound rude or anything but... how do you know about us?"

"How do I..." He began to say, almost insulted. "How could I not! It's not everyday when two teenagers open one of the greatest joke shops in the world! And with original products, NO LESS! It is such an honour to have you both on my shop today." They were taken aback by his words, but quickly recomposed themselves.

"No, Sir, thank you. Your shop is absolutely amazing." George said, walking forward to keep looking. "When Cassie sent us those items and the book..." he frowned for a second. "Sorry, what was your name again?" He asked and Jack smirked.

"Jackson Jackson. I think it's a great name, don't you?" Cassandra answered for him, mirroring his smile.

"Jackson Jackson as in the writer of The Guide for The Practical Prankster?" Fred asked, his voice high pitched and his eyes opened wide. Jack bowed dramatically.

"The one and only." He answered and the twins opened and closed their mouths, not knowing what to say.

"That book..." George began.

"Has helped us so much while making products..." Fred followed.

"You don't know how important it has been for new inventions..."

"We never dreamed that we would be meeting the author..."

"Let alone having him praise our work!" Jack laughed. "We need to sit down." George said as they both slumped on a couch close to them.

Cassandra smiled and went to explore the shop, letting them talk about whatever they wanted alone. As she was testing a pair of glasses that had two eyes painted, a voice startled her.

"Cass, I didn't know you were here." Amy said, looking very nervous.

"Shit Amy, don't sneak up on me, I nearly died." She said and the girl offered an apologetic smile. She left the glasses where they belonged and faked interest in the things beside them. "Oh, I was just passing by and I thought Fred and George would like to see the shop..." Amy paled.

"They're here?" She asked with a whispered shriek and Cassie rolled her eyes.

"Yes, they're here. I don't know what makes you so nervous. They're super nice, I already told you." Amy looked around her and took her arm, leading her to a small room filled with boxes. She closed the door. "Umm... this is going a bit too far, don't you think?"

"Listen, Cassandra. When you admire someone so much it's easy to imagine them as being unreachable, because they are. I don't think you understand how deeply I love what they've done. It's _inspiring_. What they did tells me and everyone else out there who might think that they can't get what they want that if you pour your soul into something you love and you work hard enough, you can get it. They've done so much for me without even knowing it that I can't stand to be near them because it becomes unbearable. I don't know how to thank them without making them think that I'm completely crazy!" She finished, out of breath. Cassandra gaped at her in surprise.

"Holy fucking shit. I didn't know you felt that way, I'm sorry." She said, shaking her head. "But I promise, they are amazing. If you don't know them you can probably think that they're full of it, but they're not. They are actually humble, even if they don't act like it, and I strongly believe that they would receive your compliments with open arms. You just need to be calm about it, don't expect them to make you feel bad. If they see you're feeling uncomfortable, all they'll try to do is make you feel better." Amy breathed and nodded.

"Yeah... thank you Cass." She said before hugging her.

"Now let's get out of here before they think we were making out." Amy laughed and opened the door, only to find Fred and George with arms crossed waiting outside.

"What were you doing there?" Fred asked with an eyebrow raised. Both girls looked at each other before answering at the same time.

"Making out."

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><p>"I really don't want to do this." Cassandra said, looking at herself in the mirror.<p>

Behind her, two faces looked at her. One belonged to Amy, the other to Steve.

"We'll all look the same, at least you won't stand out." Steve tried to reason. She huffed.

"Yeah... that actually helped. Thank you." She said and he smiled.

"Everyone is waiting downstairs for you so I think we should go. We'll see you there." Amy said giving her a thumbs up and Steve nodded, before they both apparated from her room.

She sighed and made her way downstairs, slowly.

"Kill me now please." She said as she appeared on her full purple glory. She could hear one or two stifled laughs, but most of them were silent.

"It looks great!" Fred and George said, bright smiles on their faces.

"That's not the world I'd use." She answered dryly.

"**You are the hottest girl in town, love. **If I were a guy I'd be wanting to rip that sexy tunic out of you with my teeth.****" Rosa, her best friend from Brazil, said with a wink.

"**Shut it, Rosa. Or I will be ripping something of yours with my teeth and it won't be any clothing.**" Cassandra replied with a sneer.

"It's kinda irritating not knowing what they're saying, isn't it?" Fred whispered to George, who nodded.

"Don't forget I can understand every word you say, and I must add that this conversation is making me rather uncomfortable." Severus said appearing on the room, his voice and expression as stoic as ever. Rosa blushed and looked mortified.

"Sorry, Severus." She said with a smile and a very thick accent. He didn't answer but the corners of his lips curled up just a bit.

"Let's go and get this over with." Cassandra said. "Come on you two." She told Fred and George. "You're coming with me."

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><p>A big stage and dozens of chairs were prepared on the school grounds once they got there. Fred and George were amazed by the beauty of the building. There was no comparison point with Hogwarts, because they were so different. Hogwarts was a castle, with high ceilings and towers, whereas this building had no more than three floors, and no towers whatsoever. The walls were painted grey, and the grounds were perfectly kept.<p>

Hogwarts was beautifully ancient, this was, for lack of a better word, modern. So, Cassandra had been right on her letters.

"So, what do you think?" She asked with a smile.

"It's amazing." They both said and she beamed.

"After we're done with this I'll give you a tour." They nodded and smiled. "Oh my God, there he is!" She said waving at someone on the group of students several feet away from them. "Come on!" she grabbed both of their hands and started dragging them along. "I can't wait to introduce you to Steve!" She said excitedly and George smirked at his twin, who frowned deeply.

"Bloody amazing." He whispered. Cassandra let go of their hands to walk ahead, leaving them alone while she looked for him.

"If you get just a little more jealous she's gonna notice." George teased.

"I'm not jealous." Fred snapped.

"No, you're not. He's just her friend, mate. And _he likes men_. That should be enough for you to back off a bit."

"That's not..." Fred began to say but closed his mouth, his lips forming a thin line. _What's the point of lying, he knows already. _"It's always Steve this, Steve that, _ohh, Steve is so amazing! Steve is so funny!_" He finished with a lame girly voice. George laughed out loud.

"You're scared that she values their friendship more than yours." He said with a roll of his eyes. "You know she loves you, alright? I don't think she loves him more than she loves you." Fred sighed.

"Yeah, thanks." He said, rubbing her eyes. Cassandra appeared again from the crowd, hand in hand with a boy.

_Fuck. _Fred thought_. _On his mind, he had built an entire human being based on his dislike towards the boy, and he was taken aback by how different he was in real life. Of course he wasn't expecting him to be like he had thought but maybe...

No. He was... perfect. Absolutely perfect. When people said "every girls' dream" they should know that they were talking about this guy.

Tall, athletic, deep blue eyes and brown messy hair. Perfect smile. He was sure that if he found a flaw on him, he'd have to get some sort of prize.

His blood boiled. _How could she not like him? How could she not fall in love with him? The fact that he's gay does not affect **her** feelings towards men. I should've known. _

Cassandra's face was lit up with a wide smile.

"Guys..." she said, barely containing the excitement on her voice. "This is Steve. Steve, Fred and George." Steve smiled brightly and Fred wanted to punch him square in the face.

"How you doing, mate?" George asked nicely, shaking his hand.

"I've heard so much about you, I can't believe I'm finally meeting you." He said with a deep voice. _What have I done to deserve this? _Fred thought. He swallowed his pride and gave him a smile, shaking his hand too. "This is amazing. really. She told me all about you." He looked like he was struggling with his words. "I just... I think it's amazing what you've done, you're so young, it's... encouraging." He scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, I must be making you feel uncomfortable. I'll shut up now." He finished with a laugh.

_Stop being nice. Stop being nice. Be a dick, you'd make this so much easier. _Fred's mind complained. _I can't do this._

"Nah, don't worry." He said, shrugging his shoulders. "She told us all about you as well. It's amazing to finally meet the famous Steve." Steve blushed and Cassandra poked his side.

"Told ya." She said to him and hugged his middle. Fred resisted the urge to frown. "Come on, I'll tell you were you're sitting." She said and started walking. They followed her to a row of seats where Rosa was sitting next to Juliana, waving happily.

"I thought your dad was coming?" George asked, confused.

"Oh, he's there." She said pointing next to her mother. "Perception spell." She whispered. He looked again and saw that he indeed was there, sitting with an indifferent expression on his face. "Go, we have to get ready." She said, pushing them forward.

Fred sat beside Rosa, who had a big camera on her hands and was shaking from happiness.

"Oh, I'm so excited." She told him and he was barely able to make out her words. "Aren't you? Look at her, she looks so nice there." She said as she took a picture.

"Yeah, she does." He answered absent-mindedly. "Why is she up there, though? The others are sitting there." He asked, pointing to the front rows.

"They are... um... acknowledging her? Is that the word? Because she is a foreign student and she had... high grades on her exams." His mouth formed an _o _and he nodded.

"And what is... Steve doing there?" He asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"He's the valedictorian." At Fred's confused expression, Rosa elaborated. "He's the one making the... goodbye speech, the best student."

"Oh." He said crossing his arms, sullenly. Rosa didn't notice because she was too busy taking pictures.

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><p>Cassandra walked to them, diploma on her hand and gown open on the front, and hugged Severus tightly. She buried her face on his chest and he whispered words on her ear. No one knew what he was saying, but she was nodding.<p>

Juliana was next, her eyes filled with unshed tears.

"Mom, don't cry." She said and hugged her.

"I'm just so proud of you." She said with a happy sob and Cassandra laughed.

Rosa was next, and practically jumped on her to give her a hug. She kissed her cheek loudly and spoke too fast to anyone apart from Cassandra and Juliana to understand.

And finally, Fred and George. She walked to them, smiling awkwardly and they both enveloped her in a tight embrace.

"Look at you," George began.

"All grown up." Fred finished. She laughed.

"We're proud. You did great." They said at the same time.

"Thank you guys." She said as they pulled apart. She took her gown out completely. "Why don't I give you a school tour now?" She asked and they nodded. "Okay." She turned to her parents. They nodded.

"We're going to go home, we'll wait for you there." She smiled and they started to walk towards the school entrance.

"Okay, let's go." She said but stopped when she saw the gown on her hands. "Wait, I'll give this to my mom. Be right back." Fred, George and Rosa nodded and watched her run to where her parents were. Her mother took the violet clothing from her hands with a smile, and when she was about to leave, they all saw her father grimacing in pain, his hand going instinctively to cover his left forearm.

"No." Rosa said, her cheery voice now lost and replaced by a dark tone.

They looked at Cassandra and Juliana, their faces white, while Cassandra was shaking her head madly, and was starting to cry. Severus kissed Juliana briefly and hugged his daughter for a few seconds giving her a fast kiss on the forehead, before releasing himself from her arms and disapparating on the spot.

Cassandra's arm was extended, as if she was still trying to stop him from leaving, frozen on the spot. They could see her shaking badly, her mother trying to comfort her. Rosa ran fast to where she was and enveloped her in a hug, talking into her ear and caressing her hair while she cried.

The twins were still too shocked to even try to move.

Until that moment, deep inside they hadn't truly believed in Snape, and what he was doing for the Order. It wasn't hard to doubt him, always so stern and angry, looking like he would rather be killing something instead of being there.

But no. It wasn't like that, and experiencing it first hand was something they didn't want to repeat ever again.

They feet moved to their own accord, directly to where she was. Juliana saw them coming first, and recomposed herself before talking.

"I think we should go." She said sternly. They both nodded. "You'll come with me, Rosa you take Cassandra. She's in no state for travelling by herself." Rosa nodded and vanished. "Come on." She said extending her hands to the twins, who took them without hesitating.

* * *

><p>"She's feeling a bit better now." Juliana said tiredly as she came down the stairs. The twins were sitting on the couch, fidgeting.<p>

"Can we see her?" Fred asked, worried.

"I don't think that's the best idea. She's not used to you both being here when this happens... I don't think she can take you seeing her on that state. Rosa is with her now. It's getting late, maybe you should just go home." She said, slumping on a chair.

"No way, we're staying." George said and they heard a knock on the door. Juliana got up to open it, and Steve's panicked face appeared on the doorway.

"I'm so sorry I didn't come sooner," he sad quickly, getting inside without permission. "I couldn't leave without my family asking where the hell I was going. Is she on her room?" Juliana nodded and he ran upstairs.

"I'm sorry," Fred said standing up, anger clear on his voice. "But how come **_he _**gets to see her and we don't? And he knows?" He was nearly screaming by now. George grabbed his arm and forced him to sit down again.

"Calm down." He said dangerously. "It's not the time or the place for doing this. Show some respect."

Juliana sighed again, rubbing her eyes, and sat on the table in front of them. Fred had his arms crossed, stubbornly.

"Fred, look. I'm sorry. I know you think you've seen her at her worst, because I know she has cried with you." She said, her tone sweet and soft. "But you haven't. We don't know when he will be coming back. Or in _what state _he will be in. From the times he leaves until he returns, it's _agony _for us. I apologize in advance, but I don't think you are able to take it yet. And Steve... well, he's been with her on this for months now. She told him everything after New Year. He's great for her." Fred clenched his jaw.

"He's gay." He blurted out and George hit him on the back of his had roughly. Juliana narrowed her eyes.

"I am aware of that, I didn't say they should get married, I said he's great for her. And he is. So are you. But I know you're not ready for facing this. You will be eventually but... not now." Fred relaxed.

"I'm sorry. I was an idiot." He said and Juliana shrugged.

"Don't worry." She said looking at her watch. "You were supposed to be back an hour ago."

"We're not..." Fred began but George interrupted him.

"Yes, we were. We should get going. Can you tell her that we hope everything works out well? And please make sure she sends a letter. We can find a way... maybe someone can travel or..." Juliana cut him off with a sad smile.

"Don't worry. I'll tell her. Tonks will be coming soon, so that's settled. I'll make sure she writes you." They smiled and nodded.

"I really hope everything works out well." George said to her as they walked to their backyard.

"Thank you, kids. You're really good. I'm glad Cassandra has you." Juliana said, her voice on the verge of breaking. "Be safe." She said as a small stone floated in front of them. They nodded and disappeared the moment their fingers made contact with it.


	22. Chapter 22

**Hey ya'll, I wanted to thank **_mysticalmadison, Madlenita, Sailormoonfan227, alaskanwoman25, charlottedean98 _**and **_anime'sguest _**for the follows and favorites!**

**Also, extra special virtual hugs to **_readingaddict24_** and **_Madlenita_** for reviewing!**

**So, I told you I was getting busy because of college, which I did and I'm practically on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and it has only been ONE WEEK. Man, I'm screwed.**

**Anyway, I'll try to update at least once a week now. I hope you don't wanna bite my head off for making you wait.**

* * *

><p>Severus was drowning in his self loathing.<p>

He had faced the Wizengamot a week earlier, and he had got cleared of his crimes, thanks to Dumbledore. That seemed nice if you put it that way, but now both sides hated him. Death Eaters and Voldemort supporters because of his betrayal, and Dumbledore followers because of his Death Eater status. There was only one person who knew the truth, and that made him feel incredibly lonely. So lonely, in fact, that it was starting to become unbearable.

He looked at the empty bottle of firewhiskey in front of him, disgust clear on his face. His hand went instinctively to his neck, pulling out the locket he always had on him.

_I miss you. I wish you were here with me._

_I need you._

He was suddenly so angry at himself that he reached for the bottle and threw it to a wall, smashing it into hundreds of little pieces.

_If you'd see me now what would you think of me? Barely a reminiscence of the man you once loved. I'm sorry, Juliana._

_I'll try for you._

_I'll be better for you. _

_I'll help the boy for you._

* * *

><p>An hour later, Severus was showered, shaved and freshly dressed.<p>

The self loathing was still there, untouched, but now at least now it wasn't in plain sight for the rest of the world to see.

Dumbledore had offered a job at Hogwarts, to keep him safe. That was the last thing he wanted to do, but he really didn't have any other options. He had told him he was going to think about it, but there was not much he had to consider, he had already decided he was going to say yes.

So, when an owl delivered a letter from the Headmaster asking him to go to Hogwarts to talk, he didn't think anything else apart from the man wanting a response to his offer.

_Use the floo, _the letter instructed.

He put his coat on and after muttering _Albus Dumbledore's Office _disappeared in a gush of bright green flames. Once he walked out of the fireplace, he began to dust himself off.

"Albus?" He asked, not seeing the headmaster anywhere. He heard sharp intake of breath and turned briskly to the source of the noise, his wand ready.

However, it fell from his hand to the floor when he saw the person sitting on one of the couches.

He was frozen on the spot.

_Are you real this time?_

Juliana was crying silently, not being able to move either.

"Severus." She whispered, her voice breaking, and the sound of her voice was enough for him to fall to his knees.

She walked to where he was and kneeled with him, not daring to touch him.

"Juliana?" He asked, tears of his own gathering on his eyes.

"Yes, love. It's me." She said, smiling sadly.

"How...?" He managed to ask.

"I asked Albus for help. When I found out Voldemort was gone..." she began to say and that felt like a slap in the face to him. He came back to his senses quickly, standing up.

_Voldemort. All I've done. Lily. Monster. Monster._

He turned away from her, but stood still when he felt her warm hand on his. She forced him to face her, but he couldn't meet her eyes.

"I've done terrible things, terrible, terrible..." he said, his voice hoarse. "Why did you come back? Why? I'm not good for you, my soul... my soul... it's just darkness." He finally looked at her. "Why?" He whispered.

"Because I love you." She said before closing the distance between them and pressing her mouth to his.

Severus mind was lost in the pure bliss he was feeling at the moment. His tongue brushed her lips and she opened them, gladly. Her hands went to tangle in his hair, pulling him as close to her as humanly possible, and his went to her hips, the sides of her shirt trapped tightly on his fists. Soon his arms enveloped her completely, their bodies melting into one.

When they pulled away, their foreheads were touching, their breathing was labored, and their eyes were closed.

"Do you still love me?" She asked, panting.

"Of course." He answered, giving her a quick kiss. "I never stopped. I love you, I love you, I love you." He said, kissing her deeply again.

"Severus." She said, breaking the kiss. "There is actually another reason why I'm here." She said and he paled, panic overcoming him. "Don't be scared." She said, her hand going to his hair, and he closed his eyes, moaning in pleasure. "Come." She said, taking his hand and leading him to another couch.

"What is-" He began to say but his voice was lost the moment he saw what- well... _who_ was on it.

A girl. A baby girl. She could be no more than three years old, probably younger. He gasped and the sleeping form of the kid stirred.

A small whimper left her mouth before her eyelids began to open.

When her eyes made contact with his, the rest of the world was lost to him.

_Those eyes... Could she be...?_

His thinking was interrupted by the little girl's cry of happiness, as a wide smile began to form on her round face.

"Daddy!" She screamed, raising her small arms to him, pleading to be picked up.

"Severus, this is Cassandra. Our daughter."

He was speechless. The little girl had her arms up still, her little hands moving wildly. He slowly made his way to her, his face, for the first time in years, an open display of the emotions he was feeling.

He kneeled in front of her and she put her little hand on his cheek. Severus gasped and closed his eyes, covering her hand with his. Seeing that he was not going to pick her up, Cassandra sat up on her own and threw herself at him, forcing him to hold her in his harms.

"Daddy." She said again, her head moving to rest on his shoulder.

Severus hugged her tightly to him, and she started playing with his hair. "**Long hair, Mommy's hair.**" She whispered and he turned to Juliana.

"What did she say?" He asked as she smiled.

"That your hair is long, like mine." He smiled too, and turned to see that she had fallen asleep on his arms.

"She does that." Juliana said with a laugh. He moved to sit on the couch, Cassie still on his arms. He stroked her hair, absolutely mesmerized.

"How did this happen? How does she know who I am?" He asked quietly, not wanting to wake her up.

Juliana sighed.

"It was the night of the attack." Severus face contorted in pain, as if he was being tortured. "Don't worry love, don't be upset." She said, huddling closer to him and moving his hand to his hair, massaging his scalp just like she knew he loved. She kissed his neck and he visibly relaxed. "I never made it to the room to drink the potion." He sighed, understanding filling his mind. "And she knows who you are because I made sure she did." He turned his face to her and kissed her shortly.

"When was she born?" He asked and she sighed.

"October 31st, 1978. She was premature." He paled and swallowed.

"What?" He managed to say, his eyes filling with tears once again.

"I'm sorry love, I know what happened last month, but it's not my fault, and it's not hers for being born..." she rambled but was cut short when she felt the feeling of his warm lips on hers.

"Please don't apologize." He said, his eyes closed. "You have nothing to be sorry for. It was _my fault._" He said, his jaw clenched.

"Severus, tell me what happened." She pleaded slowly, intertwining their fingers together.

"Not in front of her." He replied lowly, kissing Cassie's hair. He placed her on the couch and conjured a warm blanket for her.

They walked to Dumbledore's desk, sitting in the two chairs in front of it.

He was silent for a few minutes, trying to gather the courage to tell her what had happened. She took his hands in hers, giving them a reassuring squeeze. He looked at her lovingly, before giving her a small kiss. After that, he began talking.

"About year ago, after I joined _his_ ranks, I was living in a room in the Hog's Head. It was dirty and cheap, but I didn't want anything else. One night I was drinking a glass of firewhiskey when Dumbledore came with a woman. I didn't pay them much attention. But when I made my way to my room, I was surprised by a voice coming from the room they were in. I listened to something. It was a prophecy, but I barely heard the beginning before the owner kicked me out." He sighed. "Minutes later I was called by the Dark Lord. It was an report meeting. They were very regular, he summoned us to ask what kind of useful information we could have for him. I..." He began to say and his voice broke. She stood up from her chair and moved to sit on his lap. He sighed and hugged her tightly, burying his face on her hair.

"Take all the time you need, love." She said softly as she caressed his hair.

"The Dark Lord he... he always used Legilimency. I had started to study Occlumency and it had been enough to protect my memories of you and Lily but...it was still on its early stages. When he called me I was barely able to concentrate enough to send those memories to the back of my mind. And as a result, the last thing that had happened came right to the front. That was the prophecy I heard." He rubbed his eyes with a trembling hand and she kissed his neck, helping him calm down. "I didn't know who it referred to. All I knew was that it meant that he was going to be defeated and the moment I heard it I **knew** I had to protect that secret but... I know it's no excuse, believe me, but I didn't have enough time to do it and he saw it, thinking I showed it to him willingly, and then he found out it was Lily's child, and I tried to do all I could to save her but in the end... in the end-" He was crying by now and she cut him off with a kiss. They both poured their souls into it.

"It wasn't your fault, Severus." She said, her voice hoarse. He didn't answer but she knew he didn't believe that.

"I missed you so much." He whispered brokenly against her lips. "I love you. I need you." He said before kissing her deeply one more time.

"You don't know how much I missed you, every day. Every night dreaming of you, of being together again..." She said between kisses.

He felt something he hadn't felt in quite some time and decided that this wasn't the time or place to do anything rushed.

"We can't do this here, love." He said and she nodded.

"You're right." She said and moved from her lap to the chair she used before. "Where are you living?" She asked, her fingers playing with his.

"In my childhood home." She grimaced at the thought of him being on that horrid place filled with such terrible memories.

"Live with us. I have a house, in Brazil. Come with us." He stared at her, hopefully.

"Like... a family?" She nodded, smiling. He was silent for a few seconds. "Okay, but first..." He began to say and she looked at him, puzzled.

"What?" She asked and he took both of her hands on his.

"Will you marry me?"

Her voice betrayed her when she tried to answer, so she just managed to nod wildly, her face soaked with tears, a wide smile on her mouth. Before he could react, she launched herself into his arms and kissed him thoroughly.

* * *

><p><strong>O k a y. I hope no one is annoyed at the fact that all happened rather quickly and that Severus is out of character, because I couldn't picture it happening any other way. <strong>


	23. Chapter 23

**Hm. I think by now you've noticed that your scrollbar is probably very tiny. That's because this chapter is almost 13k words. **

**Yay for my consistence in chapters lenght!**

**...n****o? Ok.**

**So... I've been writing this for hell knows how long, I just know it's been weeks. So, bear down with me if I don't update again for a little while, because this one drained me pretty bad.**

**Oh, I wanted to say that in the end things get a little heated up, but nothing's explicit. However, if you think I should change the rating of this story (_I_ don't think I should but whatever, things are implied) please let me know. ****Also, in the end it gets fluffy as hell. Just so you know.**

**On a happier note, thanks to **_taintedredrose3, newgirl5, storycat12, CustardMelons, Missyick, akatsukiwerewolf9 _**and**_ Midnight's Eyes _**for the follows and favorites! **

**And obviously, all my loving to **_readingaddict24, mysticalmadison_** and **_Midnight's Eyes _**especially for your lovely reviews!**

* * *

><p>"Tonks." Fred gasped as he saw her entering the shop. Her hair was dull and brown, clearly showing that she was upset. They were about to close, so there were only a handful of people waiting for their purchases to be cashed.<p>

She smiled weakly at him, looking around while she waited for everyone to leave. Once they did and they closed the doors and windows, she finally spoke.

"Do you have somewhere more private?" She asked and he nodded.

"The flat upstairs. George is already there." He said, leading her to the staircase. They walked together awkwardly, an uncomfortable silence enveloping them.

Once they reached the door, he opened for her and she walked inside. She sat in the couch, her whole appearance looking dejected. She rubbed her forehead and bit her lip, not knowing how to start. George appeared on the room shortly after, looking at his twin worriedly.

"Just... better sit down." Tonks said, motioning to the chairs close to her. They did as told, all without saying a word.

"Is she okay?" Fred asked, his brow furrowed in deep concern. "Her last letter was so vague, she didn't say anything about-"

"No. She's not okay." The twins opened their eyes wide, immediately thinking the worst. "She's not dead. Or harmed." She elaborated. "But... something bad is going to happen soon. You Know Who assigned Petter Pettigrew as Severus assistant, and they'll both be living together on his childhood home. We think it's mostly because he doesn't fully trust him yet but... this means she won't see him this summer more than once or twice. It was a hard blow, both for her and Juliana." Fred and George sighed, burying their faces on their hands. "They will be leaving Salem for the summer. They will go to Juliana's mother house on Brazil. She wanted me to tell you that she told you that she was going to take you to America, and even if she might not be able to do that, she still wants to spend time with you. Here." She said taking a small transparent box with a stone from her pocket. "That's a portkey that will take you there whenever you touch it, and will transport you back to the place you left when you touch it again. It can be used as many times as you want. Courtesy of her mother." George took the box from her hands and looked at it, amazed.

"Wow, this is amazing." He breathed.

"It is. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go. They will be on Brazil in two days so I advice you to go after that, if you do it." They nodded and Fred walked her to the door.

* * *

><p>Cassandra was looking out the window, her mind somewhere else far, far away, when Juliana entered the room.<p>

"Steve called." She said as she walked to her daughter. "He will be getting here this afternoon." Cassandra just nodded, barely hearing her voice.

"It will be okay, Cass." She said as she placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"What if it's not?" She asked, turning to look at her with no emotion on her face. "What if it just gets so bad that he can't take it anymore?"

"Your father is not a man known for not being able to take the worst, Cassandra." She nodded and her bottom lip trembled.

"Why does it have to be like this?" She asked, tears finally falling, hugging her mother's waist. Juliana stroked her hair softly, soothing her anxiety.

"It won't last much longer, dear. Things will get better." She said but neither of them believed it.

* * *

><p>Cassandra was half asleep when she felt a heavy weight fall on top of her. She opened her eyes only to see Steve's smiling face. He kissed her cheek loudly and she smiled.<p>

"How are you feeling, love?" He said, moving to lay beside her.

"Like shit." She answered plainly. "How long are you staying?"

"As much as you want me to." He answered, hugging her tightly.

"All summer then?" She said, her voice muffled by his chest.

"Yes. All summer." He then sighed and waited a few moments after speaking again. "Have they visited yet?"

"No, but it's understandable. They do have a shop to attend, you know. They can't just leave everything." She reasoned.

"You haven't told him yet, have you?" He asked and she scoffed.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm talking about you being in love with Fred. Does that make you remember?" She hit him softly on his arm and

he laughed.

"Stop it. I won't tell him, things are too fucked up to think about that." Steve sighed loudly.

"Things are never fucked up enough to not allow yourself to love." She whined.

"Don't say stuff like that, I'm going to cry."

"Sorry, babe." He said with a smile.

* * *

><p>Cassandra woke up at 7 a.m. the next day with an incredible need to drink water. Steve was sleeping soundly next to her, so she made sure she didn't wake him up.<p>

She made her way downstairs groggily, making sure not to fall. She reached the kitchen in no time, and opened the fridge to pour herself a glass. She was drinking it when she heard two loud_ thuds_ coming from the backyard that made her wake up completely. She left the glass on the table and walked to the window to see what had happened. She slowly moved the curtain to peek out, when her eye catched a tangled mass of limbs and red hair. She gasped and opened the door quickly.

"Cassie!" They both said and stood up quickly. She ran to their open arms and embraced them. When they pulled away, Fred examined her with a frown.

"Why do you look like you just woke up?" He asked, confused.

"Because I just did! It's 7 a.m. for Christ sake!"

"No, it's 10 a.m." George said, shoving his watch on her face. "See, it's 10 a.m..." he said before he blushed. "In London. Merlin, we completely forgot about it."

"It doesn't matter." She said, waving them off. "Come inside. I'm sure no one but my grandma is awake but..." she said before walking inside. True to her word, Isabel was in the kitchen, getting breakfast ready.

"I saw you and your friends outside and I figured you weren't going to go to bed again." She said, her accent noticeable but her voice calm and soft. Cassandra smiled wide and hugged her.

"God, you're the best." She turned to Fred and George. "You're staying more than just today, right?" She asked and they nodded. "Good. Come on, I'll show you your room."

"You don't mind, right? Umm... Miss?" Fred asked Isabel awkwardly. She laughed.

"Of course not, darling. And call me Isabel." He smiled and moved to follow Cassandra.

"Over here." He heard Cassandra say from upstairs.

"Your grandmother is really nice." He said once he entered the room. It wasn't too big, but it had two single beds, dresser and an amazing balcony.

"Wow, the view here is amazing." George said as he went out. "This house is so big, does she live alone here?"

"Yeah, but when my mom was my age her cousins used to visit a lot. So she always had to have room for them. There are two bedrooms if you don't count my grandmother's and my mom's, which is where Steve and I are sleeping." At that, Fred turned his head so quickly his neck hurt.

"Steve? You're sleeping with Steve? Steve is here?" He asked, his voice strained.

"Steve is here." They heard a casual voice say from the hallway, Steve's form passing in front of the door frame. The sound of his footsteps disappeared as he went downstairs. Cassie pointed at the door and nodded.

"Steve is here. He arrived yesterday." She replied calmly and he looked affronted.

"And you're sleeping with him." She frowned.

"Jesus, you're making it sound like we're having sex or something. We're just sleeping, we've done it many times before." She replied, taken aback by his tone. "We can switch rooms if you like, he's said that you're hot more than once."

"True, I'd be willing to sleep with either of you instead of Cass." Steve said with a wink as he passed in front of the door again. George bit his lip to restrain his laughter at Fred's astonished face.

"No, we're good." He replied, slightly breathless.

* * *

><p>"You really need to control your jealousy." George said as he placed himself beside his brother.<p>

They were on the beach, sitting on the sand under a tree that protected them from the burning heat of the sun. Steve and Cassandra were playing on the water, a few feet away from them.

"I'm not jealous." Fred answered dryly. He was wearing black sunglasses that mostly hid his frown, but if you were close enough you could still see it.

"Fred, I'm serious. You're gonna end up making her upset. What are you going to do, huh? Forbid her to have male friends because you are scared she might end up liking them more than she could like you?" Fred clenched his jaw but didn't answer. "Get a grip. She doesn't like him like that, it's plain to see." He finished, annoyed.

"How do you know that?"

"Because she's too comfortable around him. They sleep together for Merlin's sake. She doesn't feel attracted to him, and **you know** he's doesn't feel attracted to her. It's bloody obvious." Fred kept quiet one more time, but George's words were helpful.

"Merlin." Fred whispered as Cassandra emerged from the water and started walking to them, Steve behind her.

The twins had finally woken up after noon, only to discover that they had both gone swimming. So, once they got there, they hadn't got the chance to see them up close.

Until now, of course.

Fred's breath was completely taken from his lungs one he saw what she was wearing: a white bikini that contrasted perfectly with her naturally light brown skin, now very tanned.

From seeing her and her mother together, it wasn't hard to notice that their body shape was almost identical. You could even see that Isabel's body, now considerably aged, was where she got it from. So, basically, the amazingly well-built curves were something that swam on the gene pool of the family.

Fred, a nineteen year old teenager, was thinking this was the most beautiful body he had ever laid his eyes upon.

"Aren't you going to swim?" She asked with a smile as she picked a towel from the floor, wrapping herself with it and subsequently ending his almost drool-inducing trance. Fred blinked fast a few times before answering.

"Actually, we were just going to do that weren't we George?" He asked to his twin who looked confuse for a second before nodding.

"Yep, we are going now." He said, both getting up from the floor. They took their shirts off and walked away fast.

"Damn." Steve said under his breath as he eyed them up, only to hear a low shriek from his side, followed by nails digging into his wrist. He looked at Cassandra, who had her eyes practically glued to the two boys. She was clearly holding her breath, and on a closer inspection, he saw her pupils were very dilated.

"You are so turned on, oh my God!" He said with a laugh, which earned a glare from her.

"Their bodies are carved like fucking Olympian Gods!" She squealed desperately.

"I can't argue that." He replied. "Let's just sit and act casual, and please remove your hand, I think I'm bleeding." She sobered up immediately and retreated her hand quickly.

"I'm so sorry!" She cried out, mortified.

"Nah, it's okay." He waved off.

"What am I going to do?" Cassandra asked after a while, leaning her head on Steve's shoulder.

"With what?" He teased and she narrowed her eyes at him. "Okay, okay." He said raising his hands in surrender. "Why don't you wanna tell him?"

"Because it will ruin the friendship. And we just started it! Everything would be awkward after it."

"Cass. Baby. Darling. Honey." She rolled her eyes. "Have you thought about the possibility that he might, I don't know, _like you back? _And that what you could have after that would be even better than friendship?" She frowned and looked at him like he was crazy.

"Steve! He doesn't like me back! I would've noticed _something. _He never even said or did anything that could lead me on." _Sure, never. _He thought with a roll of his eyes, deciding this was pretty much a lost cause.

"Yeah, whatever you say."

* * *

><p>"Do you really have to go?" Cassandra's muffled voice said against George's chest.<p>

"We do have a shop to take care of, love." He said softly as he hugged her. She made an incomprehensible complaining sound and pulled away.

"I promised I was going to take you to America." She said sadly, looking down.

"Next time." He assured her, kissing her forehead. Shortly after Fred came down the stairs, their things floating behind him.

"When are you going to be back?" Cassandra asked as she moved to hug Fred as tightly as she was hugging his twin just seconds before. Fred bit back a whimper as he felt her pressed tightly against him, holding her close and burying his head on her shoulder.

"We'll be with you for your birthday, that's for sure. We'll try to visit you again sooner, but we don't know if we will be able to. Are you going back to Salem at some point?" She shook her head, still hugging him. After a few seconds, she pulled away.

"We're not going back again. We have work to do here." They frowned.

"What work?" Their voices asked at the same time.

"Recruiting for the Order. Much like Charlie. We just expect to have better results." They nodded and she led them to the backyard.

"Be careful, yeah?" Fred said, pulling her into his arms one last time, kissing her temple.

"I will."

And with one last glance, they were gone.

* * *

><p>It was a week after Steve had gone back to America when Severus came. There were no smiles to give, no happiness to feel.<p>

Dumbledore had asked him the last sacrifice. Before the year ended, Severus had to kill him. Cassandra hugged him tightly before locking herself up on her room, leaving her parents alone.

She didn't come out for days.

* * *

><p>She stopped talking for some time. She didn't write letters to anyone, and she wasn't eating well. She was skinny to the point of starting to look unhealthy, and she had constant dark circles under her eyes.<p>

Juliana was the same.

* * *

><p>No one knew what was happening. No one could know what was happening. Steve couldn't visit because he was immersed in college, and like Fred and George, thought she was busy herself.<p>

_She was going to help her mother recruit wizards and witches._

But they just couldn't, **not yet**. The wound was still too fresh, the pain too noticeable.

And who could blame them?

* * *

><p>The holidays were long gone, and October was just around the corner.<p>

Severus visits were even more sporadic now that school had started again. He got the position he always wanted, but he wasn't surprised by the fact he didn't even care about it anymore.

They valued every visit like it was going to be the last.

* * *

><p>The day they decided that they needed to regain control of their lives and start doing something for the sake of the cause they were fighting against was October 1st.<p>

They left Rio the next day, and they didn't come back until two weeks after that.

* * *

><p>On October 31st Cassandra didn't sleep at all. She spent the first hours of her birthday looking at the ceiling of her room, her eyes wide open. When the first morning light came through her window, she sighed and got up from the bed.<p>

On her way to the bathroom she stopped to look at herself in the mirror on her dresser. She ran one finger through her recently acquired scar slowly and gently. It was the result of a meeting that had gone wrong... at first. The people that they were looking for had apparently been visited shortly before by a group of masked wizards that didn't precisely belong to the _good_ side. They had tried to take them by force, but these people were stronger than they got credit for. They mistook the girls for two of _his _followers_, _and attacked without letting them speak. The result was a permanent mark on Juliana's right shoulder, and a now fading scar that started under Cassandra's chin and ended under her breasts.

But once they listened to them and discovered that they weren't Death Eaters, they accepted to join them without a question.

Cassandra walked to the bathroom with no emotions displayed on her face. She washed her face and brushed her teeth without even stopping to look at her reflection.

When she walked into the kitchen, she saw her mother sipping a cup of what she guessed was coffee.

"You didn't sleep. Again." Juliana said without looking up. Cassandra walked to sit beside her and shook her head, grabbing a toast from the plate before her. "You will start taking potions, Cassie. That's final." She sighed but didn't argue. She had refused to do it for months now because she knew they were addictive, and she was hoping she would be able to regain her regular sleep habits by herself. But that didn't happen. Instead, she was only able to fall asleep for a few hours when she was so tired that her body shut itself out without her control.

"They are coming today. They are going to notice that something's wrong." She said after swallowing the piece of toast she had been chewing for too long.

"By _they_ you mean...?"

"Rosa. Steve. George." She paused and sighed. "Fred." She rubbed her eyes. "You can hide your wound with clothes on but I can't hide this. Like, I can't wear a scarf until it fades completely. They'll now, and I'm gonna be fucked. I don't want them to worry."

"And?" Her mother asked slowly, which earned her another long sigh from her daughter.

"What are we going to do? When _it _happens? They'll think..." she began to say but her voice broke and Juliana shushed her.

"Don't worry about that now. It's your birthday, at least try to enjoy it. You will be seeing your friends!" She said cheerily as she got up from the chair. "You haven't seen them in months. I know you miss them, and turning eighteen is a good reason to celebrate. Your friends, the people you love, will be here for you." She moved to the sink to wash the cup she just used when Cassandra's words made her stop.

"_He isn't._" She replied dryly. Juliana closed her eyes tightly and waited a few seconds before speaking again.

"I know, Cass. I'm really sorry about that."

"Me too." She said, emotionless, before getting up and going to her bedroom again.

* * *

><p>The first one to arrive was Rosa. It took her less than one second to notice something was wrong. It took her two to notice the scar.<p>

"**Just wait until the others arrive. I'll just explain it all once.**" Was the answer Cassandra gave her when she asked what had happened. Rosa wasn't too happy at this but accepted.

The next to arrive, twenty minutes later, was Steve. He got a very similar answer.

Half an hour later, the twins arrived and hell broke loose.

* * *

><p>Cassandra was sitting on the couch, her expression neutral and her arms crossed, while the twins bombarded her with a thousand questions.<p>

_How could this happen? Will it be permanent? What happened to your mother? Why didn't you tell us? How could you not tell us!?_

"Are you done?" She asked after a while, her voice calm.

"No!" They both shouted but then took a deep breath. "Yes." They said and sat down on a couch, breathing heavily. Rosa was chewing her fingernails but wasn't going to pressure her into talking, because she knew better. Steve was looking at his trembling hands, trying to pull himself together.

"What happened?" He asked lowly after a while. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't tell you because I knew it would distract you from your own lives. And I knew I was going to be fine, so worrying you was the most selfish thing I could do. And about how it happened..." she sighed. "It was two weeks ago." She closed her eyes and focused on the memory.

* * *

><p><em>Cassandra and Juliana were both slowly making their way through the jungle, hyper aware of their surroundings. <em>

_The place they were supposed to get to wasn't too far away now. The sounds of insects and small animals were the only company they had apart from each other. Until _they _arrived._

_At first it was a sound of rustling leaves that shouldn't be too worrying, except from the fact that they were on a territory where everything gave you a reason to be worried. They turned their heads towards the source of the sound immediately._

_First mistake._

_As soon as they turned back, Juliana saw a dark figure throw itself at her daughter, knocking her on the ground. Cassandra screamed, and when she moved to help her felt something like a needle being inserted on her shoulder. The pain came five seconds later, but the paralysis began the moment it made contact with her skin. She fell to the floor, helpless._

_"**Stop!**" She heard Cassandra shout as she threw the person that was now on top of her to a tree, and standing up faster than a bullet. "**We're good! She's Juliana Souza and I'm-**" she said fast but was stopped when another dark figure tried to stab her with a large knife. The fast movement she made to avoid that earned her a clean cut from her chin to the middle of her chest. She screamed in pain as blood oozed from the wound, and fell to the floor._

_"**Juliana Souza?**" A voice asked and moved to the immobilized body on the ground, moving it so her face was now visible. Juliana heard a loud gasp followed by fast instructions to what she guessed where a bunch of other people hiding and waiting for the attack. She felt another sharp pain on her shoulder as the needle-like thing was removed, followed by the feeling of something wet being rubbed into the wound and the feeling of her extremities returning to her. "**We are so sorry, we thought you were one of the masked wizards...**"_

_"Help her. Help her." She was able to say as she managed to stand up, feeling very dizzy. She heard another bunch of orders being yelled fast and heard how Cassandra's screams stopped and there was no more blood coming out of her. _

_"**Come with us, we'll help you. We are terribly sorry...**" Was the last thing she heard before she fainted._

_When she woke up again, Cassandra was looking at her, her shirt gone and replaced by a clean bandage._

_"**I already did the talking for you. You were out for five hours." **She explained.** "They poisoned you with a dart. The substance came from a rare snake, but it's also mixed with a potion of their own invention. Twenty times deadlier that way. It paralyzes you at first, then starts solidifying the blood on your veins. You pass out after the first minutes, so you basically die in your sleep. They already took it out of you but... um...**" She struggled and Juliana rolled her eyes. She already knew where this was headed. _

_"**How big is it? Will it compromise any organs or-**" Cassandra shook her head._

_"**It's a bit smaller than your palm. It looks like you have black veins but from what they told me, it won't affect you in any way. But it's permanent.**" Juliana sighed._

_"**Yeah, okay. Could've been worse. So they accepted to join us?**" Cassandra nodded._

_"**Well, that's good news. I'm proud of you.**" She said before falling asleep._

* * *

><p>"Who were they?" Fred asked, his brow furrowed.<p>

"Amazons." Juliana answered, entering the room. "Probably the deadliest group of women you'll ever meet. Whoever you are, if you are fighting a war, you want them on your side. That's why the Death Eaters tried to recruit them. It didn't go that well for them. Out of five, one managed to escape, but probably died shortly after."

"I didn't..." Steve whispered before running his hand through his hair. "Everything seems so much real now. In America they barely worry about this... They think it's never going to reach us. They think themselves invincible. But they are so wrong, but I don't think anyone will be able to convince them otherwise."

"Okay, stop this now." Juliana said. "You are all here because it's Cassie's birthday, because it's something to _celebrate. _Don't worry about the world, at least for today."

They nodded and congratulated her for the first time.

* * *

><p>Cassandra was looking at a pile of presents on the table, alone. Her eyes catched a box she knew she hadn't seen anyone arrive with it, and her heart started beating faster. There was a small card attached to it, and she opened it with trembling hands.<p>

_I'm sorry I'm not there for you_

_I hope you forgive me, and please know_

_that I will always love you, not matter what_

She felt her throat drying and closed the card quickly. She picked the box, ready to take it away from all the other gifts she was supposed to open with everyone when another one catched her eye as well.

_I don't know if I outdid you_

_But this felt right_

_Love, _

_Fred_

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. After a second she grabbed it as well and disappeared to her room, placing the two boxes on the drawer of her nightstand, out of the prying eyes of her family and friends. This was private, and she was making sure she would enjoy them on her own. No one else.

She appeared on the room a second before Rosa's head appeared on the doorway.

"**We're gonna eat the cake now, whether you're there or not.**" She said before disappearing. Cassandra smiled and followed her.

Her mother supported the three people that spoke only English in the room by singing the song with them, whereas everyone else just sang in portuguese. It was as embarrassing as something like that could get.

"Now open your gifts." Steve said with a small smile and she nodded. The pile that used to be on the living room was now in front of her.

"Okay, yours first." She said to Juliana, who smiled. It was a large box, and rather heavy. She tore the wrapping paper apart and gasped when she saw what her mother got her. "MOM!" She yelled as her eyes opened wide.

"Holy shit." Steve managed to say when he saw the box, his eyes as wide as hers.

"How on Earth..." She asked as she opened it, afraid of touching anything.

Rosa had her mouth opened wide as well, but managed to smile at the same time.

Fred and George, on the other side, didn't understand a thing of what was going on.

"What's that? What is a Motorola? Sounds weird." George said.

"What does StarTAC mean?" Fred asked with a frown.

"I can't believe you did this." Cassandra said looking at her mother, who rolled her eyes with a smile.

"Come on. You deserved it."

"Mom, I think this might be more expensive than this house." She said as she took the small device from the box and started analyzing it.

"Don't be so dramatic, I know people." Juliana said with a wink.

"Is no one going to answer?" George asked.

"You know what a phone is, right?" Cassandra said and the twins nodded. "Well, this is a phone. You can take it wherever you want and call who you want."

"What? That's not a phone. We've seen phones before. They are big and they have this thing you grab and use it to speak." Fred said, frowning.

"Oh no, that definitely is a phone." Steve said. "What you described is a regular phone, these..." He said reaching for his backpack and taking what it looked like a small black plastic brick, "are mobile phones. They are better because you can use them as a regular phone but you can be anywhere so it makes communication easier. Is it already working?" He asked Juliana, who nodded. "Can I borrow it for a second?" He said to Cassandra who put it on his hand. He opened it and pressed a few buttons and a few seconds later, his own phone was ringing. "See? You just pick up and you talk, like with the phones you know." They nodded, impressed, and Cassandra smiled.

After that, she kept on opening her presents, receiving various gifts from her family, clothes from Rosa, as usual, the collection of the Back To The Future movies on VHS from Steve and a long novel written by a witch named Casilda Jameson that looked very promising from George.

In the mess gifts, wrapping paper and she not saying who each one was from, no one noticed that she didn't open a specific present.

No one except the person who got it for her, of course.

* * *

><p>Her relatives left before anyone else. Rosa was next, because it was already late and she was missing precious hours of sleep when she had to go to college early the next morning.<p>

After her, Steve left. He, like Rosa, also had classes to go in the morning.

Which left only Fred and George.

George was in his normal mood, funny, playful, and trying to make her laugh. Fred was another story. For a while now he had been moody, answering with short sentences, a deep scowl on his face.

Of course she noticed, but the didn't tell her what was wrong even when she insisted. So she let it go. It was probably going to pass.

They left not too long after that. She told her mother she was going to sleep and practically ran to her bedroom.

She opened her drawer and pulled the two boxes. Her hand moved to the box Severus sent her without her control and she opened it before she even knew what she was doing.

Inside was a necklace with a medium sized orange stone. She thought it was beautiful the second she saw it, and picked the small paper that was under it. An explanation always awaited her when her father got her something.

_You probably didn't notice yet, but if you look closely, you will see the stone is not in fact orange, but instead is transparent, and what's trapped inside is what gives it such a bright color._

_This time your gift was entirely manufactured by myself. What you see inside that stone is a flame extracted from a dying Phoenix. _

_As you know, they are known for their ability to be born again from their own ashes, young and fresh, and grow stronger each passing day._

_What I'm saying here is, no matter how hard things can be, or if you think it's the end and there's nothing for you to keep going, remember that it is possible to turn into ashes before rising again, better and stronger than ever before._

_I love you, take care_

By the time she finished the letter her face was soaked in tears and she was rocking back and forth. She hugged the paper to her chest as she admired the living flame in the stone.

_I can't imagine how hard to manage this must have been._

It took her several minutes to finally calm herself before she could move to the other box.

She gasped one more time as she marveled at how gorgeous of the gift on her hands was.

It was a necklace as well, but this one was completely different. It was silver and white, and it glowed.

Jesus, _how it glowed._

Not in the way a lightbulb would glow but it glowed because of the sheer beauty it had.

It had the shape of a diamond, with small stones on the corners. In the middle it had a _C _in what appeared to be a white and very, very thin line. She touched it slowly, as if it even looking at it too much was going to break it.

_This is so beautiful, how can it be so beautiful._

She turned it and smiled when she saw the small inscription carved on the back.

_Don't forget me_

_I'm here for you_

She almost laughed when she saw that inside the box was a letter much like her father had written, as if they had arranged to get her almost identical gifts.

_I really hope you like it. I hope it doesn't make me look arrogant or egocentric, because that wasn't the idea._

_You know, the woman who sold it to me said that the C on the middle wasn't supposed to be a C, it was actually a mistake from the maker. He wanted to make a symbol that represented his family, but when he discovered that he couldn't, he just gave up and did what he could. He sold it to the store decades ago, and she hadn't been able to sell it mostly because even if it was beautiful, people who don't have someone with a C on their names that means something didn't want to buy it._

_Now, if you're wondering why I thought it might make me egocentric it's because the C is actually made of unicorn hair, which happens to be the core of my wand._

_Now it's starting to make sense, isn't it?_

_Okay._

_When I found out about it I immediately thought I had to get it for you. You might be asking yourself why... well, I know I asked myself that question._

_It was because it make me think that whenever you were, you could have something that linked us together._

_Something that made you remember that I'm here for you, and that no matter how alone you might feel one day, you can always count with me._

_I hope it's not too cheesy for you, and I hope you don't hate it_

_Love, _

_Fred_

Cassandra let out happy breath and let herself fall back into her mattress. _How could I not love it, you idiot._

She held both necklaces on her hand, looking at them with a dreamy look on her face. _They look like fire and ice, _she thought.

She decided that the chain on Severus' necklace looked more resistent and was prettier, so she took the pendant from Fred's and put it there. The two together looked so amazingly beautiful that she thought she was going to cry again.

She put them around her neck with little difficulty, and fell asleep soundly for the first time in weeks.

* * *

><p>"Did he give you an answer?" Cassandra asked slowly as Tonks entered the room.<p>

"No, I'm sorry." She answered sadly and Cassie rubbed her eyes.

"I don't know what's wrong." She said miserably. "How many letters have been now?"

"At least five, I think." Tonks replied as she sat beside her and rubbed her back comfortingly.

"Didn't he say anything? George? Did you give him my letter?" Tonks nodded and pulled a small piece of paper from her pocket.

"He said he's sorry he couldn't write anything longer." She said before standing up and giving her some privacy.

Cassandra opened the letter with shaky hands and started reading.

_Cass_

_I'm sorry I didn't write anything sooner, I haven't had the chance._

_Look, I don't know what's going on. Did you say anything to him? He's not reading your letters, and he's moody most of the time, ever since your birthday. He doesn't tell me what's happening, and he always did before._

_Do you think someone said something to him?_

_Please try to remember, I can't stand seeing him like this._

_Take care_

_George_

She frowned deeply. _What the hell? _She knew she hadn't said anything to him. But she had some rude relatives... _maybe they said something about him being British? _Her cousins loved doing that. _Maybe they made him feel self-conscious...and I didn't stand up for him. God, I would be upset too._

_But I didn't even know! _

With this inner turmoil she quickly scribbled a letter saying that she apologized if anyone had said something to him, that she knew how rude some of her relatives could be, and she asked him to tell her what had made him so mad, so she could apologize properly. She gave the letter to Tonks and insisted that she made sure he read it.

When Tonks handed it to Fred, he set it on fire before she could even begin to say something.

* * *

><p>Tonks didn't exactly explain to Cassandra what he had done, but she implied that she hadn't been able to make him read it. However, what she said was enough to make her cry.<p>

"Maybe you can try going there, you know. And ask him in person." Tonks suggested caressing her hair as she cried into her shoulder. Juliana was rubbing her back, frowning sadly.

"I went there. The shop was closed and it looked like no one was there. I tried to get inside but everything was enchanted." She managed to explain between sobs.

"I don't know what's going on! Everything was fine on my birthday!" She cried out, desperately. "I don't know what to do."

"We'll figure it out." Juliana said and Tonks nodded.

* * *

><p>November was long gone, and December 24th had arrived, making Cassandra and Juliana felt Severus absence with more force than ever before.<p>

To their family's dismay, they decided that they weren't going to be part of the celebration they were going to have this year in Juliana's aunt house. Isabel offered to stay with them, but they convinced her to go.

It was an hour before midnight when _he_ arrived.

They were sitting on the steps that lead to the entrance to the house when a loud _crack _signaling that someone had apparated there. They lifted their heads immediately, because there was only _one person_ that was able to pass the wards placed around the house.

And there he was, standing as tall and imposing as usual.

Juliana was the first one to react, not even bothering to walk to where he was but instead appearing in front of him and launching herself into his arms, kissing him with all she had. Severus returned the kiss just as eagerly, pulling her as close to him as humanly possible.

When they pulled apart he immediately moved to Cassandra, who was crying with her hand covering her mouth. He opened his arms and she ran into him, hugging him as tight as she could, scared that if she didn't he might disappear.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here for your birthday, darling." He whispered kissing her hair. She shook her head.

"You're here now. " She whispered against his chest. " I don't even care about anything else."

* * *

><p>It was past midnight when Tonks arrived. She didn't look to good herself, with dark bags under her eyes and her hair a dull brown color.<p>

She was so immersed on her own thoughts that she didn't notice him at first.

"How are you doing?" She asked as she quickly took out all of her winter garments. "I know it must be-" Her eyes widened when she saw the familiar dark figure sitting on the couch, next to a sleeping Cassandra. "Severus!" She yelled, moving her hand to her chest in an attempt to calm her racing heart. "You made it." She said with a smile on her voice. The corners of Severus' mouth lifted just a little, which was more than enough for her. Cassandra stirred and opened her eyes slowly, completely waking up when she saw Tonks standing there. She rose up from the couch and ran to hug her. Tonks returned it with a wide smile.

"I missed you too, kid." She said with a wink.

Apart from Isabel, Tonks was the only other person that knew what was _really _happening. Severus and Juliana had decided to tell her the whole truth after coming to the conclusion that if she didn't know the truth when _it _finally happened, their friendship was going to be damaged beyond repair. And that was something they were not going to be able to bear.

Tonks opted for a Sacred Oath instead of an Unbreakable Vow. The magic was more powerful, and much more efficient. With an Unbrekable Vow, if she swore to never tell anyone about it, she could be coerced to tell the truth anyway, and she would die afterwards. But with a Sacred Oath, depending on the words you used, you'd be dead even before they tried to use Legilimency on you. It was much more dangerous, of course, but it was a risk she was more than willing to take. It was precisely this made Severus grow fonder of her, and it was his situation what made Tonks finally understand what he was doing completely, both gaining each other's full trust.

"You don't look well, Nymphadora." Severus said in a tone that could be barely perceived as concern. She didn't even bother to stop him from calling her _that _anymore. Oddly enough, she couldn't picture him calling her something other than that. "You haven't been sleeping." He said matter of factly.

"No, no, I haven't. Might as well tell you why, Juliana probably briefed you on the subject already." She launched herself on an explanation on how Remus Lupin was a _prick_, as she nicely put it, and how annoying it was that he didn't let her be with him because _he chose what he thought was better for her. _

"I damn well know what's good for me, I'm a big girl, I don't need anyone making choices for me." She finished, angry and upset. "I'm sorry, Severus. I know you don't like him, but I've had the chance to meet a side of him that-" Severus stopped her.

"Don't apologize, Nymphadora. _You_ have nothing to be sorry for. And especially not for being in love with someone who clearly considers himself below you, and thinks that he can't give you what you deserve." He rubbed Juliana's wounded shoulder absent mindedly as she snuggled closer to him. "I understand you're upset, and it's your right to be. But I need you to understand something: He knows that being with him can leave you in a dangerous position. And not only because of his _condition _but also because of the way people like him are perceived by society. They are hated, and people fear them. Your association with him will lead you to become an outcast yourself. I dare say he only does this because he wants to you to live a normal life, without having to hide because of him." He stopped at this and Tonks realized he wasn't just talking about Remus. "But he doesn't realize that his biggest mistake is thinking that you are confused and you don't know what you're getting into. He believes he's doing what's best for you, giving you a chance to be truly happy, when, actually, _he_ is all you need to achieve that. Give him more time, I believe he'll realize how wrong he is." Tonks sighed, somehow very comforted by his words.

"Thank you, Severus."

* * *

><p>A while later, Cassandra finally agreed to go to bed, with the promise that her father was not going to go without saying goodbye.<p>

When she came out of the bathroom after washing her teeth, a soft knocking on the door of her bedroom startled her.

"Come in." She said and Tonks peeked her head in.

"Hey, are you still awake?" She asked and Cassie nodded, moving to sit on the bed and inviting her to do the same. Once she did, they were silent for a while.

"I spoke with George." That got Cassie's attention.

"What did he say? How's Fred? Did he say anything about me?"

"They're both fine. George said Fred is not so moody anymore, but still refuses to say what happened to him. They are spending the holidays at the Burrow. Harry is there too, and Bill's fiancé is living with the Weasleys now." Cassie nodded but didn't say anything. Her hands were closed on her lap, and Tonks knew it was because they were starting to tremble. "Cass, I have an idea, I talked with George about it and he agreed to help." Cassie looked up at her and she saw a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "I will take you to the Burrow, or somewhere close, and George will convince Fred to go with him without saying he's going to meet with you, because he might refuse if he knows." Cassie nodded, her expression of clear pain. "Don't be sad about it, I jus don't understand what happened and I really think you need to find out as well, and you need to do it face to face." Cassandra nodded again and rubbed her eyes.

"When?" She managed to ask, her voice hoarse.

"After your dad leaves. I don't want to take any time you can have with him from you."

"Okay. You just come pick me up any time after that, I will be ready." She sighed. "Thank you." Tonks smiled sadly and moved to hug her.

"Anytime, Cass. Anytime."

* * *

><p>It was the morning of December 26th, and George had barely managed to get Fred out of bed.<p>

"Why are we doing this? I'm freezing my balls off here." Fred complained and George rolled his eyes. "Where are we going, anyway?"

"We're almost there." George answered as he reached the top of the hill that was now covered in a heavy layer of snow. Fred was a few feet behind him, having more trouble to walk.

"I don't understand-" He began to say when he heard his twin's voice say _a__ccio wand, _and felt it leave his pocket to place itself on George's hand. "What the hell..." He said dumbfounded, but George cut him off again.

"Fix this." He said before disapparating with a loud _crack. _Once he was gone he was finally able to see someone standing there, with their back to him. The person was wearing a coat with the hood on, and he couldn't really make out who could possibly be, because he wasn't fully awake yet and the reflection of the sun in the snow was making his eyes hurt.

"Excuse me?" He said politely as he walked to whoever was standing there. He stopped abruptly when he saw who it was.

"Fred." Cassandra managed to say before he frowned and turned to leave. She sighed and made an effort to not start crying in front of him. "Fred, wait." She said and grabbed his arm, which earned her a nasty glare before he pulled it out from her grasp roughly. "Fred! Please tell me what happened!" She yelled at him and he turned to her, his face contorted in displeasure.

"Leave. Me. Alone." He said and walked to leave again, but she grabbed his arm one more time. He moved his head to avoid looking at her face.

"Look at me." She whispered and after a few seconds he did.

"Get lost, Cassandra." She let the hand that was holding his arm fall to her side, and looked at him, her face emotionless. _He never called me that before._

Fred swallowed and turned to leave one more time. Apparently she wasn't going to follow this time, because he managed to walk several steps without her doing anything. But she wasn't done, not yet.

"What is wrong with you!" Cassie screamed angrily, all emotions she had been supressing the past months finally catching up to her. He ignored her and kept walking, quickening up his pace. She huffed, furious, and disappeared on the spot, only to appear in front of him, stopping him again. He glared at her.

"What is wrong with me? Nothing could possibly be wrong with me, Cassandra, why do you ask? Is there anything that should be wrong?" He spat, venom and sarcasm dripping from his voice. She winced at his tone and took a few steps back.

"Of course there is something wrong! You've been ignoring me and treating me as if I was some kind of disease you want to get rid of! What the fuck is happening? Why are you acting like this?!" She asked, desperate. He narrowed his eyes at her and walked closer.

"Don't think I don't know, Cassandra. How long have you known you didn't want me as your friend?!" He screamed and she looked at him, confusion and disbelief showing on her features.

"What?! Are you mental? How can you even ask that!" She screamed, enraged.

"STOP FAKING!" He screamed back, his face red. "Save it! Do you think I don't know you hid my present on your birthday? Have you always been so ashamed of me? I thought you were different." He whispered, his eyes starting to water.

"That's it?" She said, her voice low. "You think I didn't open your gift because I'm ashamed of you." He narrowed his eyes at her.

"It's quite obvious now, isn't it?" By now her hands were balled into fists and she was resisting the urge to scream.

"You know what? It's not. It's not quite obvious." She said and pulled a chain out of her sweater. There was a orange stone he didn't recognize but right next to it was... _his gift_. "You know what this is?" She said, her voice strained because of the tears she was trying to hold back, showing him the stone. "This is my father's gift. That birthday was the first one he missed in fourteen years. This Christmas was the first time I've seen him in _months_. You don't recognize it because I didn't open his present in front of everyone. You know why? Because it was too personal to share it with anyone else. Now think." She said with her teeth clenched. "There was only other present I didn't open in front of everyone." She now grabbed the pendant he gave her with two fingers. "And you thought it was because I was ashamed of it? I opened George's in front of everyone if you didn't notice. When did I ever show _any _kind of sign that could make you even consider that I'm ashamed of you?" She said and shook her head, dejectedly. The tears were falling freely now. "I thought you knew me. I was such an idiot. I knew the moment you met me you created an image of myself in your mind, with this horrible personality, and all this time you've been waiting for me to finally show it to you. Well, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm not the bitch you imagined I was. And I'm fucking done with you." She said and he just stood there, his face unexpressive, his mind going crazy with guilt. She turned to leave and before his hand could grab her arm to stop her, she vanished.

"_Cassie._" He whispered brokenly, his arm extended in front of him.

"Freddie, are you okay?" The voice of his twin asked behind him. He shook his head. "You need to go after her, mate."

"I don't know where she is." He said lowly, rubbing his eyes.

"Well... I happen to remember her saying that when she's upset she likes to go to a park with swings. It relaxes her." Fred's face lit up immediately, but a second later he frowned.

"She could be in London for all we know."

"Yeah, but I don't think she went that far. I believe she just disappeared away enough so you couldn't stop her. You know where the park is, Fred. Go." George said, handing him his wand. Fred nodded and hugged his brother quickly before disapparating.

* * *

><p>Cassie was breathing shakily, trying to calm herself down, while her tears fell freely from her eyes.<p>

"Jesus Christ, Cassandra. Get a hold of yourself." She whispered as she tried to dry her cheeks, only to feel them get wet again.

She was sitting in a swing close to one of the corners of the park without moving, alone. Her hands were trembling and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't hold back the sobs. _Why? _She asked herself. _I knew he was too good to be true. _As she thought that, she also began to search in her memories for something that could support his terrible accusations, only to find nothing. Actually, she found herself remembering things she had said to him that more than anything else could be considered as hints for Fred to realize she liked, _liked_ him. It seemed like she was practically saying_ I really like you, please like me back.  
><em>

Maybe that was the problem, he had caught the hints and this was his way of telling her he wasn't interested.

_Well, he could've not been such an asshole about it._

She buried her face on her hands and groaned lowly.

What was she going to do now? What was she going to say? Was he ever going to speak to her again? Well, _she_ wasn't going to speak to him.

But what about George? He was going to stop talking to her as well if Fred did. She knew that for a fact.

And the thought of losing their friendship had her crying harder, her eyes closed tightly behind her palms.

Suddenly, she felt two hands grabbing hers and carefully removing them from her face. Her head shot up quickly, only to make instant contact with a pair of eyes she had grown so very fond of. But right now, she wasn't in the mood for thinking about that.

She tried to remove her hands from his but he held them tighter. She was sitting and he was kneeling in front of her, his head a few inches lower than hers. She tried to not look at him, but her eyes apparently had a mind of their own and kept moving to see his face. She wished she hadn't looked, because as she did, she felt most of her anger dissipate and the sudden urge to _kiss-him-and-make-everything-better_ was becoming unbearable.

She didn't particularly know what state her face was in, but she knew she looked awful. She also knew that he wasn't too far behind from her. His eyes were red and puffy, and his bottom lip was trembling. His cheeks weren't wet at the moment, but they weren't dry, like if he had just ran his hand over them.

"I don't think I wanna talk to you." She whispered looking at him in the eyes, and he frowned sadly.

"Cassie..." He said brokenly and she had to fight the urge to launch herself at him one more time. "I know I said terrible things and I understand if you don't want to see me again but I won't without saying this." Fred took a deep breath and she sniffed as he rubbed circles on her hands with his thumbs. She looked down. "I..." He said and his voice broke. "I'm in love with you." She looked up immediately, her eyes wide in surprise.

"What?" She whispered, hoarsely. He closed his eyes tightly, already preparing himself for rejection. He wasn't finished yet, though.

"I've never been in love before but I know..." He opened his eyes again and looked her as she gaped. "I know this must be what it feels like. I feel like I _physically need_ to be around you to feel... complete. And I've been feeling this for some time now, but I didn't want to risk ruining our friendship because I know it's hard and I know you probably don't feel the same-" His rambling was cut by the feeling of a warm pair of lips on his.

It took him a second to react but when he did he instinctively let go of her hands to cup her face and deepen the kiss. She moaned as she opened her mouth and he began kissing her harder, making his hear skip a beat and groan in response. Her hands moved to tangle on the hair behind his neck and he bit her lip when she pulled softly.

They pulled away just barely, their foreheads touching and their ragged breaths mixing with each other. Cassandra opened her eyes first, only to see him smiling slightly. He followed shortly after, his smile now becoming a full grin.

"You like me back?" He asked huskily. She smiled.

"I think I might be in love with you too." She said as gave him a short kiss on the lips before pulling back. He didn't seem too happy at this because he pouted without even realizing he was doing it.

"Can we go somewhere more private?" She asked and he nodded before stealing a quick kiss. He stood up, brushing his now dirty and wet knees and grabbed her hands.

"Do you feel comfortable with apparating? We can walk if you want to." Fred said, uncommonly shy. Cassie nodded and moved closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face on his neck, placing a soft kiss there and enjoying the way his body tensed, while he pulled her flush to his body.

"Are you ready?" He asked softly and she nodded, her face on his chest. He kissed her hair and she closed her eyes tightly, trying to prepare herself for the awful feeling she was about to experience for the first time.

However, she couldn't be ready for how terrible it was. It only lasted a second, but it was enough to make her dizzy and nauseous.

Cassie groaned loudly and tried to pull away from Fred, but he held her tighter, rubbing soothing circles on her back under her coat and above her sweater.

"The feeling will pass in a second." He said reassuringly and she nodded, her eyes tightly closed.

After a few moments she recovered, and Fred reluctantly let her pull away from his arms. That was when she realized they were in... _a tree house? _She frowned and moved to look out of a small window only to see that they were completely surrounded by dozens of other trees.

"Where are we?" Cassie asked, still looking outside. In a second she realized that it was unnaturally warm for a tree house and turned to see Fred with his wand in his hand, concentrating on conjuring a blanket and cushions for them to sit in. She looked around as she took her coat off and decided that even if it was a small place, it was still too big for a regular tree house.

"In the woods close to The Burrow." He answered once he was pleased with the result. He looked at her and extended his hand for her to take. When she did, he pulled her to him and kissed her softly before they placed themselves comfortably on the floor. She moved to sit next to him but he pulled her on his lap, hugging her close and burying his face on her neck. "Dad built this house when we were kids, Ginny was still a baby. He became obsessed with it and wanted to do it the muggle way but... he ended up using magic. We spent entire summers in here." He said with a smile and a nostalgic tone. Cassie snuggled closer, taking his hand and intertwining his fingers with hers. They were both silent for a while, until she spoke.

"Fred, we need to talk." She said and he let out a sigh.

"I know."

"You said awful things to me. It really hurt." She fought back the urge to start crying again. Fred rubbed her back again and she bit her lip. "Did... um... did you mean what you said?" She asked in a whisper. He opened his mouth to answer but she kept talking. "Why didn't you talk to me? I... I spent weeks believing you hated me." Her voice broke at the end of the sentence and he closed his eyes tightly, fighting back his own tears.

He moved his hand to her cheek and lifted her head to make sure she was looking at him. He took a deep calming breath and began talking.

"I'm going to be completely honest with you because that's the least you deserve." She bit her lip. "I... honestly thought that you were ashamed of me." She frowned sadly and her eyes filled with tears again. "It's not because of you, it's because of me. Cassie..." He rubbed his eyes and she realized that whatever he was going to say next wasn't easy for him. She cupped his face on her hands, making eye contact with him. She leaned into him slowly and kissed him deeply, making him sigh in pleasure.

"I want to make you feel better." She whispered before she kissed him again. He responded eagerly and she shifted so her legs were wrapped around his hips. She felt something harden fast underneath her and resisted the urge to moan and roll her hips against his. "Let me help. I'm here to listen." She rested her forehead against his, her hands massaging the back of his neck and his around her torso, pulling her close. His eyes rolled back at the amazing feeling of her so close to him, and took a few breaths to calm down. _Not yet._ After a while he sighed tiredly and rested his head on her shoulder, not seeing her face. She kept her hands where they were, helping him relax.

"I never had a girlfriend." He said suddenly and she frowned, wondering where he was going with this. "In my life I liked a few girls and I wanted to go out with most of them but it just seems that... I don't know... I'm never good enough for them." He was silent for a while but Cassandra felt it wasn't for her to speak. "You know, George has never had a girlfriend before, either. It's just that... it seems that people believe that because we _like_ jokes or pranks we _believe_ that everything is a joke, or maybe that we won't take a relationship seriously because we can't take anything seriously. But we can, I promise we can. I can." He looked up said as if trying to convince her that he meant it. She smiled sweetly.

"I know you can, love." She said before kissing him softly. He blushed and returned his head to rest on her shoulder.

"What I'm trying to say is that... Cassie, before I met you, the only feeling I was sure I could feel was this sort of _liking _towards a girl that always ended in nothing. I was used to it. Hell, I had accepted that it was all I was going to feel. But then you appeared, and I got to know you, and suddenly there was something new I didn't know how to handle, and I even tried to deny it at frist. But I could only lie to myself so much. I fell for you, Cassie. And I didn't know what to do about it." He lifted his head again to look at her, only to be surprised by her kissing him roughly.

Once again Cassandra felt something harden underneath her, but this time she didn't hold back the moan or the urge to roll her hips against his. Fred's mouth had moved to kiss her neck when she did this, and he couldn't help but sink his teeth into her skin to stifle the loud groan that was about to come out of his own mouth. She kept grinding against him, starting to kiss him one more time as his hands moved to grip her backside.

"Cassandra..." he moaned as she now moved to kiss his neck, his breathing ragged. "Hmmm... Cassie... Cass..." He said and suddenly opened his eyes wide, realizing that if they didn't stop now he was going to... _finish_ his business. He wanted to tell her to stop but his mouth couldn't begin to say the words. Her mouth claimed his again and his hands moved to their own accord, making them both moan loudly in pleasure. He was breathing fast and he knew there was no way of stopping what was going to happen next. "Cassie, I'm..." He managed to get out before she moved her mouth to his ear and nipped at his earlobe.

"I know." She whispered huskily and that was enough to send him to the edge. He felt suddenly very dizzy and was sure he was seeing stars. He said her name loudly and buried his face on her neck.

_How the hell did she do that? _His mind managed to think in the midst of his frenzied pleasure.

"I am so sorry." He said, mortified and red as a tomato. "I just... I'm so sorry." She smiled at his embarrassment and kissed him again.

"Fred, I was aware of what was going to happen." He looked at her with his eyes wide. "I _wanted _that to happen." He took a deep breath and shifted a bit underneath her, making her laugh. "Fred!" She scolded him jokingly, looking flustered. "You surely are quick to get eager again." He blushed and hid his face on her chest. That particular place did not help to ease his growing problem.

"I think we should change positions, I'm not finished yet and this isn't helping anymore." He said as she began to disentangle her legs from his waist. She smirked.

"Oh, I can _feel_ that you're not finished." She teased and he narrowed his eyes at her. She moved so she was now facing him, and he cleared his throat.

"First..." He began to say in an _all business _voice that made her mock him by sitting up straight and looking at him attentively. "I would like to apologize for the fact that I _clearly _got the better end on our previous... situation." She smiled.

"I figured you would, don't worry about it. You have plenty of time to make it up to me." She said with a wink and he groaned, as if he was in pain.

"Please don't say stuff like that." He said with a frown and crossed his legs uncomfortably as he muttered _scourgify _under his breath. She laughed out loud.

"Sorry." She said not sounding at all apologetic. "Go on, say whatever you need to." She said with a reassuring smile.

His mood changed quickly and he looked down, biting his lip.

"Lie down with me?" Fred asked shyly and she nodded, moving lie down on the blanket as he did the same, both facing each other. He looked at her for a few seconds before moving his hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "You know..." He began and she laced her fingers with his. "I'm don't want to sound arrogant but... I was popular in school. George and I were _very_ popular. People always wanting to hang out with us for a good laugh, girls saying we were hot... but in the end we were hardly ever considered more than that. Fred and George Weasley, always good for a laugh. But... do you know how bad it feels knowing that people don't trust you enough to ask you for help... or that they don't tell you any secrets because they think you won't take them seriously?" Cassie frowned sadly and moved her arm to his waist, pulling him closer to her. "We have Lee, he's our best mate. But I swear, in the whole school, he's the only one who trusted us, who actually took the time to get to know the other side of us. There was this one time when I saw that Katie... Katie Bell, remember? I told you about her." She nodded. "Well, I saw that she was really sad and I went to ask her what was wrong and she said that she wasn't going to tell me because I was going to laugh at her." He frowned. "I knew she was upset, I wasn't going to laugh at something that was making her upset. But that's how everyone felt about us, and it hurts. It really does." Fred's voice was strained and Cassie leaned in to place a soft and comforting kiss on his lips. When she pulled away, his eyes were closed and he was smiling slightly. He huddled closer to her, his arm draped on her hip. "Anyway... that's what always scared me the most about being your friend."

"Fred..." Cassie began but he interrupted her.

"I need to say this. I was terrified that you thought I wasn't going to be a good enough friend for you because I couldn't take things seriously. And I'm sorry, I really am, because you never did anything that could've given me a hint that you felt that way... it's because I'm insecure. And I know that most people would laugh if they heard me saying it but just because I don't show it doesn't mean I don't feel it. I get scared, and I want people to like me... desperately." She could sense his uneasiness as he told her this.

"Fred, you really don't need to say all this..." He shook his head.

"I do. I do need to. I want to tell you everything." She nodded again. "Whenever I was with you there was always part of me that was waiting for you to finally say that you didn't trust me at all, just like everyone else. But that part was always overpowered by the bigger part that said that _you are not like everybody else. _You're different. Apart from Lee and George, you're my best friend." She blushed and he smiled. He then frowned. "But then there was your birthday... I'm so sorry, Cassie. I'm so sorry for what I did to you." He apologized, his eyes filling with tears.

"Fred..." Cassie said softy. "What did you exactly believe that night?" He was silent for a while, looking as if he was trying to gather enough strenght to speak.

"I thought you didn't open my present because you thought it was going to be a joke and you didn't want me to ruin your birthday, especially with things as complicated as they are now. I was convinced that you had assumed that it was going to be something stupid and you obviously weren't in the mood for it. I'm so sorry, Cassie. I never wanted to hurt you, or make you cry. I was stupid and the first thing I should've done was talking to you about it."

She sniffed, holding back tears, remembering how she felt when she found out he had ignored her letters.

"I wrote you letters. I wish you would've read them, maybe then..." She was cut off by his lips on hers.

"I know, I know. I was an arse and I am so sorry, truly sorry. Please say you forgive me. Please." He pleaded in a soft whisper, crying shamelessly and she couldn't help but nod.

"Of course I forgive you." Cassie said before kissing him until they were breathless. "I love you, Freddie." He closed his eyes and sighed happily.

"Only George calls me that." He whispered.

"I'm sorry, I won't-"

"No, I want you to call me that. I like the way it sounds." She smiled. "Cassie?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you too."

* * *

><p><strong>Ohhh, I hope it wasn't too terrible. I tried to do my best. <strong>

**Please forgive any grammar mistakes and stuff, it's quite long and I'm the one who revises my chapters.**

**Also, if you didn't guess already, Cassandra's new phone is the good old Motorola StarTAC. I, of course, don't own the rights to it and stuff. Keep in mind that her birthday was on October 31st, 1996. If you do a little Wikipedia research, you'll find that the phone was released on January of that year, 9 months before. And it was expensive as fuck. So, it is kind of a big deal that Juliana got it for her. **

**Steve phone is the phone that came before that (Motorola MicroTAC), which I'm sure most of you have seen at least once in your lives.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Wohoo! A chapter with lots happy moments! Yay! **

**Also... I believe Severus started working on Hogwarts in 1981, but for the purpose of my story, he started working there in 1982.**

**Okay, bolded lines are portuguese, blah blah blah.**

**Like I always do, I'd like to thank **_smilin steph_** and **_TwinsOfAquila_** for the follows and favorite! **

**And a big mountain of love to**_ readingaddict24_ **who always reviews and brightens my day.**

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><p>It was a bright and sunny April afternoon when Severus and Juliana got married. It wasn't a big ceremony, because that wasn't what they wanted. At least fifteen of Juliana's relatives were present, but on Severus side, Dumbledore was the only one who knew about it and the only one who assisted. He was also the one who was responsible for marrying them.<p>

Cassandra was all smiles when she walked to where they were to give them the rings. Severus leaned down and kissed her forehead as she gave them to him. She beamed at him and her mother and ran away to sit on Isabel's lap.

After the ceremony, -in which they swore to be together as long as they both loved each other, for better and for worse always trusting each other and never denying each other's help when they needed it- they had a small party.

They decided to have their honeymoon on Paris, and they traveled there the next day. The problem with that was that even if Severus absolutely loved having time alone with Juliana, not being around Cassandra was something he didn't enjoy too much. That's why their final decision was to be alone for a week and a half, and then have Isabel bring Cassie to spend the other week and a half with them.

They reserved their alone days for mostly romantic evenings instead of visiting the most popular landmarks, seeing as they wanted to do that when Cassie was with them.

"I haven't felt this relaxed since we spent Christmas together when we were still in school." He said one night when they were walking through the streets after having dinner in a restaurant under the stars. Juliana smiled and squeezed his hand as she leaned into him. He let go of her hand so he could hug her waist. She did the same.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Juliana agreed and a comfortable silence fell over them. After a while she started smiling for no apparent reason and he noticed.

"What are you smiling about?" Severus asked and she buried her face on his chest. He kissed her hair and she sighed, contented.

"I just love you _so much_. I can't believe we're finally together." She answered looking into his eyes. He smiled and leaned down to plant a soft and sweet kiss on her lips. She responded immediately and pulled him closer, walking backwards until she felt a wall behind her. His hands were cupping her face and hers were grabbing his hips, bringing him as close to her body as possible. She moaned and the kiss started to become more and more passionate and frantic, and he pulled away.

"We need to go back to the hotel now." Severus whispered huskily and she nodded. They walked to a dark alley and he saw the world around him become a blur, only to appear on their room the next second. Juliana's lips were on his again before he could even react, and his hands moved to their own accord to her thighs, pulling her up. She tangled her legs around his waist, moaning loudly when she felt him against her.

Severus carried her to the bed and placed himself on top of her. Their clothes were gone fast, and Juliana rolled so she was the one on top. She began leaving a trail of kisses on every single one of his scars, all while telling him how much she loved him and how absolutely gorgeous he was.

* * *

><p>After they were finished, Juliana was lying naked almost completely on top of him, her eyes closed and a blissful smile on her face. Severus was rubbing circles on her back with one hand, the other intertwined with hers.<p>

"I love you." He said and she moaned, starting to grind against him. He let out a throaty laugh and rolled so she was now lying under him. He began kissing her neck as his hips continued colliding with hers, loving the sounds she was making. "I really, really love you." Her hands moved to bury themselves on his hair, bringing his head up so she could kiss him. She placed one of her legs on his waist and pressed him against her, begging him to give her what she needed. He smiled and did what they both wanted so desperately.

Once they were done, they laid on the bed, facing each other, their legs tangled. One of his arms was under his head, while the other was enveloping her back and pulling her naked chest onto his. His eyes were closed as she lightly caressed his cheek, carefully moving his hair behind his ear. She leaned in slowly and placed a short kiss on his closed lips. A smile formed on his mouth automatically and he opened his eyes a bit.

"Another." He whispered and she laughed. She leaned to kiss him one more time but this time he opened his mouth and grabbed the back of her hand, leaving her where she was. She smiled and returned the kiss eagerly.

They spent some more time just kissing, lost in the feeling of being in each other's arms.

"When did you know you liked me?" She asked him suddenly. He raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"What?"

"Back in school, there has to be a moment when you realized you liked me." He frowned and thought for a second.

"Well, do you want to know the moment I knew I liked you or the moment I admitted to myself that I liked you?" She opened her mouth with a surprised smile.

"Both!"

"Well... I admitted to myself that I liked you a less than a week after the first time we were together in the library. But officially, I know I liked you when I saw the first time you were in the Great Hall. Deep down I couldn't believe how beautiful you were." She blushed and hugged him close.

"Aww, I love you." She said, giving him a small kiss.

"When did _you_ know?" Severus asked later.

"I knew it the moment I saw you. Hell, I think I knew I was_ in love_ with you the moment I saw you." His eyes opened wide.

"What?!" She smiled.

"Yeah... I don't know. The moment I laid my eyes upon you I knew there was no one else. It had to be you, I didn't want any other. It had never happened to me before... love at first sight, I mean. Or whatever that was." She blushed and buried her face on his neck with an embarrassed smile. "Whenever I saw you I couldn't help but think about how gorgeous you were..."

"Juliana, are you serious about this?" He asked without emotion and she looked up with a frown.

"Of course I'm serious. And when I got to know you my feelings for you only became stronger." She said with a strong determination in her voice. He looked at her for a few seconds before pulling her on top of him and kissing her with all he had. Juliana smiled dizzily when they pulled away.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" Severus asked with a small frown, looking as if he really was confused about this, while stroking her cheek with his thumb. She leaned into his touch and smiled.

"Just exist, basically." Juliana answered, moving herself so her head could rest comfortably in the crook of his neck. He rubbed her back and she closed them, ready to fall asleep.

"I love you so much." He whispered and she hummed.

"I love you too, Severus."

* * *

><p>Cassandra arrived a few days later in the arms of her grandmother, asleep. Isabel asked them how things were going and their bright smiles were enough answer. Juliana carefully tried to wake Cassie up but she didn't want to open her eyes, even if they already knew she was awake.<p>

"Cassie, baby." Severus said sweetly as he put his hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes a bit and threw her arms at him. He smiled and Isabel placed her on his open arms. She hugged his neck and moved her head to rest on his shoulder. She fell asleep again in seconds.

"Well, I have to go. I hope you enjoy the rest of your holiday." Isabel said and disappeared after giving each one of them a hug.

"You don't know how much I love seeing you both like this." Juliana said with a smile as she looked at Severus with Cassie sleeping on his arms.

"I know how much I love it." He replied with a small smile as he rocked her in his arms.

Cassandra stirred in his arms and opened her eyes slowly.

"Daddy." She said with a sleepy voice. "**Food.**" Severus smiled, knowing what she wanted. He had begun learning portuguese, seeing as it was the only language his daughter spoke for now.

"I think my mom packed her favourite cookies." Juliana said, moving to check the bag Isabel had brought with her. Inside where clothes and shoes, toiletries, her sippy cup, and her favourite blanket. "Ha!" She said as she found a package of animal cookies.

"How about another picnic in front of the Eiffel Tower today?" Severus suggested as he fed Cassie one cookie. Juliana grinned.

"Absolutely."

* * *

><p>The remaining days were spent visiting every place a tourist would visit during their stay in Paris. Cassandra ran everywhere, especially if birds were involved. She loved running where they were and seeing them fly away. However, the end of the trip finally came, and they had to go back home.<p>

"**Mommy! Don't want to.**" Cassie whined pulling her mother's dress when they were getting ready to go. Juliana rolled her eyes and smiled to Severus, who returned it with a smile of his own.

"**But we have to go home, baby.**" She said softly and bended to pick her up. "**We can't stay here forever. Don't you miss grandma?**"

"**I like here.**" She said as she started to cry.

"**No baby, don't cry.**" Juliana said as she started rocking her in her arms. Severus quickly walked to them.

"Cassie?" He asked softly. She looked at him with watery eyes and sniffed. "**We have to go.**" He said as he moved a strand of hair behind her ear. She shook her head and buried her face on Juliana's shoulder.

"Okay, let's try something different. Follow my lead." Juliana said to Severus as she moved to the bed where the suitcases were. "**Well, I guess we're staying.**" She said and Cassie looked up immediately. She moved to open the suitcase. "**Too bad we won't see grandma again... but well, at least we're staying here.**" Severus caught up with her and moved to help her 'unpack'. "**I'm really gonna miss Teresa... though. Won't you, Severus?**" She knew this was a soft spot for Cassie because she adored Teresa. Severus nodded.

"**Teresa?**" Cassie asked softly.

"**Yeah, well, it doesn't matter. Because we're staying now. Poor Teresa, she will be sad when she knows you don't want to see her anymore...**" Juliana said, pretending to be sad.

"**I love Teresa!**" Cassie yelled, as indignated as a three year old girl can get.

"**Well, it doesn't matter. Because now we live here and we won't see her or grandma anymore.**"

"**Nooooo!**" Cassie whined.

"**No what?**" Juliana asked, feigning confusion.

"**I wanna go home!**" She yelled and Severus bit back a smile.

"**Are you sure? We can live here now...**"

"**Home!**" She cried out and Juliana bit the inside of her cheek to avoid a grin.

"**Okay, it's your choice.**"

"Sure it is." Severus said with a snort and Juliana narrowed her eyes a him. He laughed and lifted his hands in surrender. "I love you." She rolled her eyes with a smile.

* * *

><p>It was nighttime when they arrived home and they decided to just put Cassie to bed and announce their arrival in the morning. Cassie was already asleep when they got there so they just brushed her teeth and changed her into her pajamas.<p>

They were tired too, so they got ready and went to bed as well.

Severus was already falling asleep with Juliana touching the ring on his finger when she spoke.

"Love?" She whispered, not wanting to wake him up if he was already asleep.

"Yes?" He said, holding her a little closer to him.

"How are we going to tell Cassie that you're leaving in September?" She asked carefully, moving her head a little so she could she his face. He sighed and kissed her neck.

"I believe that if we explain that I need to work, she'll understand. Besides..." He said and moved her so she could face him. "I've talked to Dumbledore and I will be able to come home and visit at least four days a week. It also helps that there is a three hour difference between cities, meaning that if I leave at midnight, I will arrive here at 9 p.m. I'd need to be careful with my hours of sleep, however, because I could easily fall into a routine where I don't sleep as much as I need to..." Juliana interrupted his rambling by kissing him deeply. When they pulled apart, he looked confused. "What was that for?"

"I was coming to terms with the idea that you wouldn't be coming home at all! Do you know how amazing this is!?" She was smiling widely, and he couldn't help but smile back at her.

"I spent too much time away from you. I don't want us to be separated like that ever again." She kissed him again, this time softly.

"I love you. I love you. I love you." She said between kisses.

"I love you more." He replied with a smirk.

"No you don't." She said as she moved to kiss his neck and he placed his hands on her waist.

"Yes, I do." He said, biting back a groan of pleasure.

"Nope."

"Yes." He moaned when she sucked a sweet spot and Juliana didn't know if he was continuing their banter or if he was telling her to keep going. She kept on kissing him anyway.

"How about..." She said as she tangled her hand on his hair, making him lean back, exposing more of his neck to her. "we love each other so much it's silly to think it can be measured?" He grinned.

"I think that's a very accurate description." He cupped her face on his hands and moved her, their foreheads resting against the other and their breaths mixing together.

"You and Cassie are the best things that ever happened to me. What I have, what brings me happiness, I have it because you decided to talk to me, to give me a chance. I can't tell you how thankful I am. I really love you more than life itself, Juliana." Her eyes filled with tears and she closed her eyes.

"I love you more than life itself too, Severus. Forever." They kissed until they fell asleep, happy in each other's arms.

* * *

><p>Cassandra didn't want her father to leave her again, and cried for a long time in Severus' arms when he told her he was leaving, but ultimately understood that he had to work and was happy that she got to see him four times a week.<p>

Severus was travelling to Hogwarts by portkey, so they got together on the backyard to say goodbye.

"Daddy**, don't go. Stay and play with me.**" Cassie said from her place beside Juliana. Her eyes were red and puffy but she wasn't crying at the moment. Severus kneeled in front of her and she placed herself in his arms immediately.

"**But I have to go, my love. Daddy has to work.**" Severus said caressing her hair. "**But I will come and see you often, and we will play together. Would you like that?**" Cassie nodded and hugged him tightly.

"**I love you** daddy."

"**I love you too, darling.**" He sighed and stood up with Cassie on his arms. Juliana wasn't crying, but he could see she was sad too.

"Please, for everything that is good in this world, find a way to install a phone in your room. I need to talk to you every day." He smiled lovingly at her and hugged her with his free arm.

"I will, love. Don't worry about it. I have to go." He sighed. "I love you." He kissed her on the lips and Cassie on her forehead, before placing her on her mother's waiting arms.

Severus looked at the portkey on his hands that in a few seconds would take him away from his family. He smiled at the image in front of him: his wife waving at him with their daughter in her arms. Their daughter, who had his hair and his eyes, and loved him as much as he loved her.

Before he could think anything else he felt the familiar sensation that came when you used a portkey, and a few seconds later he was standing in front of Hogwarts' gate. He sighed and made his way inside.

* * *

><p>He kept his word and on the first day ended up installing a phone on his office, magically changed so it only worked to call Juliana and, as far as telephone lines went, did not exist at all.<p>

"Severus?" Her voice asked after two rings.

"How did you know it was me?" He asked as he laid on the bed, already prepared to go to sleep.

"I know stuff." She answered and he could hear the smile on her voice.

"Of course you do, love. How's Cassie?"

"She's already asleep. We went to the park today. She was running and jumping everywhere. She was so tired." Severus smiled at the mental image. "How are you? The kids arrive there tomorrow, right?" He sighed.

"I'm okay. But I really miss you both. Yeah, the kids arrive tomorrow. I'm not really excited about it." Cassie bit her lip, but he couldn't see her.

"We really miss you too, love. I really wish you were here in bed with me..." She teased.

"Juliana." He warned, not really wanting her to stop.

"What? I just miss the way your body feels against mine... kissing you, my hands touching your-" Severus interrupted her with a loud groan.

"Keep going." He moaned and she bit her lip, her hand going under the sheets automatically.

"Do you want to know what I'm doing now? I bet you can imagine. Just the sound of your voice gets. Me. Going." She said huskily and smiled when another loud groan could be heard on the other side of the line. "What are you doing there, love? Are you doing what I think you're doing? Are you tou-" He interrupted her again, and she could hear he was panting.

"Yes, yes. I need you, I wish you were here. I am so close..."

"Do it for me, Severus." Juliana said in a low voice and smiled when all she could hear where moans and heavy breathing.

"Merlin, Juliana." He panted. "That was half as good as the real thing but... it was amazing. Thank you, love."

"Anything for you, Severus. I love you."

"I..." Severus panted again. "...love you too. So much."

"Whenever you need to relax... you know who to call." She said playfully and he laughed out loud, muttering _Scourgify_ under his breath.

"I sure do. I have to go, love. I need to get some sleep before tomorrow."

"Oh God, yes! It's already 1 a.m. there!" She cried out worriedly. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I was finishing my class plans, love. I am the head of the Slytherin house after all." He said, a bit dejectedly.

"What's wrong?" She asked, worried. Severus sighed.

"It's just..." He thought for a second about not telling her that something was wrong but that never worked out for either of them, and he really wanted to hear her comforting voice. "I'm 22, Juliana. How am I supposed to control a class of 17 years old teenagers when I'm just barely older than them? How can I hope to be taken seriously?"

"Oh, love!" She cried out. "Why didn't you tell me sooner you felt that way? I could've helped you."

"I know, I didn't want to worry you. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's okay." She took a deep breath. "Look, Severus. I don't know how you will take this advice but I think you need to make them respect you. You need them to see that you are the authority in the classroom and you won't tolerate anything else but their best. Love: yes, you are 22. But you also are, and you know me well enough to know I would never say this as a bad thing or to try and make you feel bad about it, a rumored Death Eater." She heard him sigh. "I'm sorry, love. Was I too harsh? I didn't want to make you feel bad about it."

"No, darling. You weren't. You're right. And after all, I have a reputation to build. Dumbledore told me so today." He rubbed his forehead.

"What did he say?" Juliana asked with a frown.

"Umm... Dumbledore said that people need to know that I don't want to be here, and that I can't stand anyone. He said that it will be helpful for me when... umm, when _he _comes back." Juliana closed her eyes and took a calming breath.

"Yeah... I suppose he has a point. But... don't lose yourself in the process, okay, love? Don't forget who you are. You are a good man, Severus. Never forget that."

"Thank you, Juliana. I love you." She realized the conversation was coming to an end.

"I love you too, Severus. Take care of yourself for me, yeah? Goodbye."

"Bye, tell Cassie I love her."

"I will. Bye."

* * *

><p>Severus was true to his word and for the rest of the school year visited four times a week, without counting special occasions like Juliana's birthday, Cassie's birthday, his birthday, Christmas and New Year.<p>

This, along with family vacations, was their routine without interruptions for two years. That was until the year a girl named Nymphadora Tonks started her year on Hogwarts.

"Severus?" Juliana asked one night when they were laying in bed together.

"Yeah?" He asked softly.

"What do you know about Nymphadora Tonks?" His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he moved to look at her.

"What do _you _know about Nymphadora Tonks?" He asked with a confused expression on his face.

"Oh, it's just that Pomona sent me a letter saying that there was a little Hufflepuff girl named Nymphadora Tonks who apparently wanted to write to me and ask me a few questions. Facts say that she is surely your student."

"Hmm, Professor Sprout must've talked to her first year students about you. Anyway, yes. I teach her."

"How is she? Is she a good student?" Juliana asked curiously. He smiled.

"No... she's not. But before you ask anything, it's not because she doesn't know how to brew potions. She's absolutely brilliant. But she is so clumsy that she ends up putting one wrong thing into her potion and ruins it completely. Her technique, however, is flawless. She knows how to chop, cut, stir... she's amazing. She's just too much of a klutz for her own good."

"Awww, I like her already!" Juliana said with a smile.

"She's also a metamorphmagus." Juliana opened her eyes wide.

"You're joking! That's amazing! Oh my God!" Severus smiled at her excitement.

"She's reckless as well. She gets into trouble a lot. Very short tempered. She gets especially angry when someone calls her by her first name."

"Ohh, but Nymphadora is such a nice name!" She pouted and he kissed her briefly.

"Don't you ever say that to her, it will definitely put you on her bad side."

"Have you given her any detentions yet?"

"Two, I believe."

"Ohhh... I'm dying to write to her! I will answer Pomona first thing in the morning! Oh, love, about that. I have an idea, I hope you agree with it."

"Yeah? Tell me."

"Well, it's not the first time I talked with Pomona but every time she sends a letter it's with a huge owl that has to travel for two days to get here. It makes me feel so bad! So, I thought that we could do some hocus pocus..."

"Hocus pocus?" Severus asked with a smile and she shushed him.

"Yes, hocus pocus. So every time someone tries to send me a letter from Hogwarts it gets sent to you, and then when I want to reply I give them to you and with some other hocus pocus you get an owl to deliver the letter to the receiver. But it would be more work for you so you have to be okay with it. If you feel that you don't have time, or that you can't do it, it's okay. It's just something I thought about."

"No love, I think it's a great idea." She blushed and smiled and he couldn't resist the urge to kiss her. "I will do it, it's no problem for me."

"I love you." Juliana said, hugging him close.

"I love you too, darling."

* * *

><p>Tonks and Juliana sent letters back and forth and Juliana grew really fond of her in no time. She was absolutely delighted that Cassie liked her so much when she came to visit. However, the downside of that was that when she left, Cassie was crushed.<p>

"Daddy, I miss Tonks. I want Tonks back." She said, becoming more and more comfortable with speaking in English as time passed.

Severus smiled inwardly and pulled her into his lap.

"**I know baby. But guess what I have here for you.**" He pulled an envelope from his pocket and Juliana smiled when she recognized the handwriting. Cassie smiled and tore it apart. She looked at the letter for a few seconds, not wanting anyone else to see it before her, and she handed it to her mother so she could translate.

"**Tonks says that she misses you and that she hopes you haven't found a new friend to replace her.**"

"Never!" Cassie said seriously. Juliana and Severus grinned.

"**She says that she wants to visit again this summer, if _you_ want to see her again.**" The truth was that with Andromeda they had already decided that they were coming back the next summer, but Tonks wanted to make Cassie happy.

"**Yes! I want to see her again! Yes! Yes!**" She said clapping excitedly on Severus' lap. "**I'm going to draw something for her right now.**" She jumped to the floor and ran away to the living room.

"It's incredible how attached to her she has become." Severus said, looking at her from the kitchen.

"I know, right? She is completely enamored with her. How is she doing in potions now?" Juliana asked as they both started cooking dinner.

"She has gotten a lot better. Pays much more attention to what she's doing. Her last potion was actually perfect. Reminded me of some of yours, in fact." Juliana grinned, proudly.

"I might have been given her some advice..." She said, smiling, as she felt his arms circling her waist from behind and his lips next to her ear.

"I know you did, and I'm glad." He whispered and kissed her neck before moving to chop vegetables with great expertise. "Keep doing it, you're doing her some good."

"Thank you, love." Juliana said with a smile. "And how are the other students?"

"You know, the usual. Mostly dunderheads." She laughed out loud and his mouth quirked up.

"I bet." She moved next to Severus and hugged him, successfully making him stop what he was doing and hug her back. She leaned into him and buried her face on his neck, placing soft kisses and making him sigh in pleasure. "Are they giving you too much hell?" She asked softly and he tightened his hold on her, already answering her question.

"It's okay. I've gotten used to it by now. And the reputation is already made, it's only getting stronger." Juliana sighed.

"You haven't forgotten what I said to you on your first day, right, love?" She asked looking at him in the eyes.

"No, darling. I'll never forget it. Sometimes what you've said to me is the only thing that keeps me going. You and Cassie are what keeps me going. I love you." He said and leaned to give her an earth shattering kiss that had her knees wobbling. When he pulled away she pulled him in again.

"Kiss me like that again, please." He grinned.

"With pleasure, love." Juliana forgot about the rest of the world as her hands moved inside his shirt and her hands roamed his back and brought him close to her. Severus was enjoying this as much as she was, but he remembered that they had a little daughter that could walk on them in any second. He pulled away a bit but she kept giving him pecks whenever he tried to speak.

"Juliana... Cassie... next room..." He managed to get between kisses. She stopped and rested her forehead against his.

"We'll continue this later." She said and gave him one last kiss.

Ten minutes later Cassie appeared on the kitchen again, her drawing already on a sealed envelope. By then Severus and Juliana were already looking as they did before, no flushed faces or messy hair.

"I'm done!" Cassie said happily as she put the envelope on the counter. "Daddy, up!" She said lifting her arms to Severus, who was currently taking a break.

"**You're getting a little heavy for this, Cass.**" He said as she started touching his hair, wincing in pain when she pulled.

"**I'm not!**" She said angrily and crossed her arms.

"**Okay!**" He said with a laugh. "**I'm sorry, it was my mistake.**"

"**Yes, it was. But I forgive you.**" She said softly, moving to rest her head against his. Juliana smiled and moved to get her camera, careful to not get noticed so the picture was completely natural. They were both surprised by a flash of light and immediately turned to the source.

"**Mommy!**" Cassie said as she hugged Severus neck and hid her face on his shoulder.

"Yes, **mommy**. You haven't changed a bit, have you?" Severus said with a playful serious tone.

"Change?" She asked in mock indignation as she walked to them, rubbing Cassie's back and giving him a small kiss on the lips. "Never."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm not saying you have to, but I swear that reviews really fuel my fire and make me absolutely happy. So if you have a few seconds to spare, maybe you could leave one telling me what you think of my story so far? It would be amazing. Of course, it's completely fine if you don't. Never feel like you need to review for me to upload or something, but it really makes feel good.<strong>

**So, there's that.**

**Cheers!**


	25. Chapter 25

**I know the last chapter was like the the Everest of fluff but this one is pretty damn fluffy as well, save maybe from the ending.**

**Okay, now I'm going to mention a few beautiful people, so make sure you read their names and remember how awesome they are.**

_kisstherainandthesun, OffTheDeepEndx, L00ve-Joanna, peacesista123, LovelyListener, Hiwatarisgurl38 _**and**_ Iknewyouweremuggle._

**They are amazing because they followed and favorited this story, and I totally love them for it.**

**But the Oscar goes to** _readingaddict24 _**because of the constant reviews! I LOVE YOU!**

**Bolded lines are meant to be on portuguese... I don't have to keep on saying it, right?**

* * *

><p>"Fred..."<p>

Kiss.

"Fred."

Kiss.

"Fred!"

"What?" Fred whined and pulled back just enough to look at her face, their noses almost touching.

"You need to go back home and so do I, we've been here for hours." Cassie said and smiled when he pouted and frowned.

"Can't we live here forever? George can visit." He asked with a sigh and leaned back into the cushions, pulling her on top of him as he did so.

"As tempting as that sounds, I don't think it's a very well thought idea, love." She said from her spot on his chest. "You have the portkey, you can come home whenever you want. I can even get you another one that will get you directly to my room..." She said with a smirk and he grinned widely.

"Aren't you a devious little thing." She snorted.

"I'm devious, but I'm not little." He licked his lips at the husky sound of her voice and she leaned down to kiss him passionately. Once again she felt him grow underneath her but this time he stopped her.

"I can't do that to you again, Cassie." He sighed and moved her from top of him. This time was her turn to pout and he quickly kissed it away. "You're right, we should probably go home."

Fred disappeared the blanket and cushions and Cassie got them back to the hill where they had met a few hours ago. He hugged her close and she hugged him back, moving her head to rest on his shoulder.

"I don't want you to go." Fred said with a broken voice and she hugged him tighter. "Are you my girlfriend? I want you to be. Please?" He asked in a shy whisper and she was so happy that she could get the chance to kiss his hesitation away.

"Of course, love." She answered with a smile and they started to kiss again, this time slowly and thoroughly, trying to ingrain the feeling of each other into their minds forever.

"I know we've said it before and people get freaked out when they say it but I love you, Cassie. I really love you." His breathing was labored and his hands were cupping her face, with their foreheads touching and their eyes closed.

"I really love you too, Freddie... I have for some time now." The corner of his mouth quirked upwards but he didn't open his eyes yet, instead he closed the small gap between their mouths and kissed her with all he had. She responded just as eagerly and they were lost to the rest of the world in seconds.

"I have to go at some point." She said when they pulled apart.

"I prefer not to think about that."

"I told you that you can come whenever you want. I'll be waiting for you."

"You won't have to wait long, I'll be going every time I have a free moment."

"I have to go, Fred, you too."

"I know, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Goodbye, Freddie. I love you."

He smiled and kissed her one last time.

"Goodbye, Cassie. I love you too."

And a few seconds later, she was gone.

* * *

><p>"Fred?" George's voice sounded but he didn't pay attention.<p>

He was laying on the snow with his arms and legs open as if ready to make an angel, but without moving. His eyes were closed and a pleased smile was adorning his face. The feeling of the warm sun on his skin was a plus, making him feel better than he already did.

"Are you dead?" He asked jokingly and poked his cheek with his wand.

"Might as well." Fred answered with a full grin now, opening his eyes to find his twin kneeled next to him, a knowing smile plastered on his face.

"I knew it'd go well, my question now is _how well _did it go."

As Fred told his brother every single part of the story without leaving a single detail out, George's incredulous expression only grew.

"I can't believe you did it on the treehouse, mate. You're my only hero for the rest of my life." George said as he moved to lay down beside his twin.

"Merlin, George. I can't explain how it felt. It was... I just can't." He sighed, frustrated. "It was the most amazing I've ever felt and we _didn't even have to take our clothes off. _Can you imagine what it would be like if we...?" He trailed off and bit his lip, restraining himself.

"If you get a boner here I will hex you with all I have, Fred. I mean it." George said seriously and got up, pulling Fred up as well.

"Yeah, I know. Let's not talk about that again." He nodded in response and they both decided to walk back to the Burrow.

"Are you telling mum and dad?" George asked after a few moments with his hands the pockets of his coat.

"I don't know... should I? I wanted to tell Ginny... she's gonna be happy, I think." Fred sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"I definitely think you should tell mum and dad." George answered immediately. "It is a big deal... yeah, Ginny's probably going to ask you to take her to Brazil next time you go if you tell her, keep that in mind. I don't think Ron and Hermione should know, though. They are already having a hard time not being able to tell Harry about her, let's not add another secret to their burden."

"Yeah... yeah, I suppose you're right. Yeah, I'll tell them as soon as possible."

Suddenly George started laughing out loud, confusing Fred and making him frown.

"What's up with you?" Fred asked.

"Man..." George began to say but started laughing again. Once he was able to control himself he started speaking again. "I **really** wouldn't wanna be in your shoes when Snape gives you the father talk." Fred stopped walking abruptly and his face paled.

"I hadn't thought about that. Oh no... Merlin. No... no, I'm dead. I'm going to die, oh no... _nononono_." He said desperately and George just kept laughing hysterically.

"Calm down, mate." George said placing his hands on his twin's shoulders, successfully bringing him back to reality. "I don't think he's going to kill you. He'll definitely hurt you but..." He started laughing mid sentence again and Fred moved from his grasp with a scowl on his face.

"It's not funny. I don't wanna piss my pants in front of him out of fear. Oh Merlin... _I'm dating Severus Snape's daughter_." He cried out and George took pity on his scared expression and decided to calm him down.

"Freddie, breathe." Fred did as told and the color started to return to his face. "Look, you're not just dating Severus Snape's daughter. You know she's more than that. She's Cassie. Loving, funny, nice, smart Cassie. As long as you don't break her heart I promise your balls will stay just where they belong." He finished seriously and Fred snorted before laughing.

"Thanks George." He said with a small smile and hugged his twin tightly.

"Anytime, Fred." George answered as he hugged him back.

* * *

><p>The next day when Fred woke up he discovered that the house was half empty, save from his mother, George and Ginny who were asleep, and his father, who was about to leave for work. He stopped him before he did and told him and Molly that he had something important to say. He could see that Molly felt uneasy and probably had a thousand theories about what he wanted to say, and none of them were nice.<p>

However, when he finally gathered the courage to say it, he wasn't very surprised to see that his parents were absolutely elated with the news. Molly had the biggest grin on her face and he was happy he had managed to make her forget about Percy for at least some time. Arthur had to leave but congratulated him and said that Cassie seemed like a great girl, and that he was very happy for him.

George and Ginny made their way downstairs at the same time, and George guessed the reason behind Molly's sudden change of mood in a second.

"Two down, one more to go." He said and looked at Ginny, who stared at him as if he was insane.

"Okay..." She said with a frown and sat down to eat breakfast. Fred moved to sit on the chair opposite to hers, now completely catching her attention. She left her toast on the plate and crossed her arms. "What's going on?"

"I need to tell you something but you need to swear on everything you love you won't talk about it with anyone. Except from George, mum and dad, who already know." She raised an eyebrow and looked at him incredulously.

"What about Ron?" He shook his head. "Bill? _Phlegm_?" She asked with a sneer and he shook his head more vigorously.

"Like you'd tell anything to Fleur, Gin." George said with a snort and she nodded with a shrug.

"True. So, what is it?" She asked resting her elbows on the table.

"Remember how I became close friends with Cassie..."

"Yeah..." She said and he could see the corners of her mouth lifting up, no doubt because she already imagined what was coming.

"Well, as of yesterday, she's officially my girlfriend." Ginny's eyes opened wide and her mouth transformed into a full grin. She got up from her chair and ran to where he was, throwing herself at his arms.

"It took you both so long! Congratulations!" She said and planted a loud and wet kiss on his cheek.

"Ugh," He said pushing her away and cleaning his cheek with his sleeve. "Gross."

"You wouldn't be saying _gross _if it was Cassie..." She said with a sing-song voice and he narrowed his eyes at her. She walked back to her chair and took a bite from her toast. "Anyway, really. I'm very happy for you. I stand by my belief that this should've happened sooner but... I'm glad it finally did. She'll be good for you." She said with a soft smile and he smiled back.

"O-kay." George said as he finished his breakfast. "Enough sibling bonding, you're making me sick." Ginny stuck her tongue at him and threw him a piece of bacon that he caught with his hand and ate without remorse.

"So, when are you going to visit?" Ginny asked Fred, feigning disinterest.

"Today, we'll only have the shop open until noon." He furrowed his eyebrows. "Why?"

"You know, I haven't got a nice tan in so long... I really wish I could have a chance to go somewhere where it's currently summer, preferably in South America... and I don't want to brag, but I'm such an amazing sister, aren't I?" She asked innocently and Fred rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Ginny, do you want to come with me and George to see Cassie?" He asked and she brought a hand to her chest, pretending to be surprised.

"What an odd and surprising request, Fred! You know I would only go if you really wanted me to..." She said and he shook his head with a smile.

"I want you to come with me and George to visit Cassie, Ginny."

"Oh, then I must go. I'm such a good sister, I wouldn't be able to say no when you ask so nicely..." She said with a smirk.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say."

* * *

><p>The twins took Ginny with them to the shop and since they'd done it before, no one questioned their actions. The only others who really knew where they were going afterwards were Molly and Arthur, who, obviously, didn't say anything.<p>

Ginny wasn't pleased with having to travel but portkey, but didn't say anything about it. They _fell _into Cassie's backyard at 10 a.m. Brazil time, and as soon as they tried to get up they heard an excited shriek.

"Oh my God! Ginny!" Cassie said excitedly as she helped her getting up, hugging her the second she was on her feet. "I haven't seen you in so long! How are you doing?"

"Well, I landed on my butt so I'd have to say that I've seen better times..." She replied with a groan.

"Nice, I'm her boyfriend but she decides to say hello to my _little sister _first." Fred complained crossing his arms. She grinned and turned to him, enveloping him in her arms and crashing her lips to his. He smiled and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.

"Hello." She said breathlessly when they pulled away.

"Hi." He replied with a satisfied smile, his arms still around her waist.

"I'm gonna throw up." Ginny whispered to George, who laughed and nodded.

When they pulled away Cassie moved to hug George, burying her face on his neck.

"Thank you for helping me, George. I owe you so much." She whispered and he smiled.

"No you don't." He replied when she pulled away. "It was nothing, really."

"You know it wasn't, and someday I will pay you back." She said seriously. "Have you eaten yet? We ate breakfast not so long ago, lunch will be ready in couple hours."

"What time is it? We ate lunch an hour ago." Ginny said as they made their way inside the house.

"Around ten, I believe." She said with a shrug. "Anyway... Ginny, I want you to meet my grandmother. She's outside, I think..." Cassie trailed off and opened the front door, successfully taking all the air out of her lungs.

"Did I die? Am I in heaven?" Ginny asked with her mouth opened in surprise at the beautiful sight in front of her. She turned to Fred and George. "I'm not coming back, I'm staying here _forever_. It's your responsibility to tell mum and dad what happened to me." She said walking out and admiring the beautiful beach. Her brothers rolled their eyes at the same time but smiled.

"Not gonna happen." They both answered.

"**Grandma?**" Cassie asked and Isabel looked up from the flowers she was taking care of. "Fred and George are here, and they brought their sister with them. I'd like you to meet her." Isabel smiled warmly and started to walk to them.

"Oh, hello boys. I haven't seen you here in some time." They both smiled but Fred's was clearly forced. Cassie noticed and grabbed his hand, pulling him closer to her.

"Hello, ma'am." Ginny said with a smile and extended her hand. "I'm Ginevra Weasley, but please call me Ginny."

"Nonsense, darling." Isabel said and pushed her hand away to give her a hug and two kisses oh her cheeks. "You are part of the family now as well. I'm Isabel, Cassie's grandmother. It's a pleasure." Ginny grinned at her warm welcome and nodded.

* * *

><p>"I feel really sorry for Bill." Fred said to George when they were walking a few feet behind Ginny and Cassie, who were together with their arms linked, talking animatedly and laughing every five minutes as they tried ridiculous hats, sunglasses, necklaces, bracelets from the stalls they passed.<p>

George, who wasn't paying attention to them and was rather occupied looking at the girls on the beach, didn't caught on what he meant.

"How come?" He asked with a frown.

"Mum and Ginny... if they didn't like Cassie I would feel like crap. Honestly. And they don't just _dislike _Fleur... they downright hate her. Mum is a bit better at hiding it but Ginny... Merlin, she absolutely despises her and everyone knows it. I can't imagine how bad it makes him feel. Bill loves her so much..." He answered and bit his lip.

"Yeah... I know. But Fred, Cassie and Fleur are really different, personality wise, I mean. Cassie's a bit more down-to-earth... their personalities don't clash so much. Fleur... well... you know how she is. But they will have to learn to live with her, because she's not going away anytime soon."

"Yeah, but still. I wish he'd got the chance I did."

"Don't worry mate." George said patting his back. "He will... eventually." Fred looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "Probably... hopefully."

"Hey, don't fall behind!" Cassie yelled as she and Ginny waited for them to catch up. Fred intertwined his fingers with hers and gave her a small peck on the lips before they started walking together again.

* * *

><p>Months passed with Cassie and Fred constantly visiting each other, and the ending of March arrived too soon for Cassie's liking.<p>

She was sitting on her bed biting her lip nervously, while Rosa tried to calm her down.

"**Cass, it's not like you've never done it before.**"

"**I've never done it before with him! It's a big step... I mean... we fool around a lot but we've never actually _done it. _It's his birthday, I want it to be perfect.**"

"**It will be.**" Rosa replied with determination. "**Don't worry about it.**"

"**Do you think it's too cheesy? Maybe he won't like it. I mean... Oh God, I don't know.**" Cassie said and buried her head on her hands.

"**It's amazing, Cassie. He'll love it. I promise.**"

"**You can't promise that, but thank you.**" She smiled weakly and Rosa rubbed circles on her back.

* * *

><p>Fred and George spent their birthday on the Burrow with the family that could visit, which meant that Cassie couldn't be there with them. As her present the sent them a pair of mobile phones identical to hers, with a note that read:<p>

_You'd be amazed how much faster than an owl phone calls are._

_You'd be amazed how cool is to mix muggle technology with magic, as well. The results you can get are great. For example, making two mobile phones work perfectly without real service and a never-ending battery._

_Yeah, I'm just that awesome._

_Enjoy it _

_(and you better call me first)_

_(like you have anyone else to call)_

_Love you both_

_Cassie_

They opened her present when they were alone, to avoid any prying questions from their brother or anyone else who shouldn't know anything about her.

They left the Burrow at 8 p.m., and Fred was ready to go twenty minutes after they arrived to their flat.

"Good luck, Fred." George said with a smirk and Fred smiled.

"Thanks... bye."

Cassie had given him a special portkey that sent him to what appeared to be the middle of the jungle.

"Cassie?" He asked nervously, looking around him. He felt a pair of arms around his waist and sighed, contented. He turned around and saw that she was wearing a summer dress and flip flops, and smiled at the sight of her. She moved her arms to his neck, just as his moved to her hips.

"Happy birthday." She whispered before she pulled his head down to meet hers and kissed him hard, pouring her feelings into it the best she could.

"Happy indeed." Fred replied with a goofy smile when they parted to breathe.

"Come on, your surprise hasn't even started yet. But... I need you to close your eyes and don't open them until I say so. Or you will ruin it and I will be sad."

"Okay." He answered with a smile and pulled her closer to him.

"No. Promise." He rolled his eyes playfully.

"Cross my heart, hope to die." He answered and she grinned, kissing him briefly.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

Fred didn't feel anything, as usual, so he couldn't know if they had arrived to their destination or not. Cassie pulled away from his arms and he felt her move him so he was facing something, but he still didn't know what it was. He concentrated on the sounds and the feeling of the air around him, and wasn't very surprised when he couldn't feel or hear anything. As usual, she had thought about everything.

"Okay, you can open your eyes." She said and her voice sounded a little further now. When he opened his eyes he felt his mouth open in surprise, as his eyes moved fast to capture the entire scene around him as fast as possible.

The sounds and feeling returned and he could feel the breeze moving his hair and he could hear the waterfall in front of him. They were in the jungle still, without a doubt, but this was what looked like a clearing and a lake with crystal waters. Fred had never seen a natural place so majestic before, and was completely speechless.

In front of him, Cassie was biting her lip but waited patiently for him to say something. When he kept silent she decided to speak, but he did first.

"This is amazing, Cassie." He said and looked at her with wonder in his eyes, making her smile.

"Do you really like it? I wasn't sure if you'd like something like this but then I said what the hell, if he doesn-" Her rambling was cut by one of his _world-shaking_ kisses that she had grown so accustomed to.

"It's perfect, I love it. I love you." He said quickly before kissing her again.

"That's not all, I didn't bring you here just to see this." Fred raised an eyebrow and Cassie intertwined her fingers with his, pulling him behind her. They walked a few feet before stopping in front of a blanket laid on the floor, on top of which could be found what Fred knew was all the food and drinks he loved. Cassie bit her lip again and looked up at him expectantly, gauging his reaction.

"I really love you." He said with a smile and pulled her flush to him so their lips were barely touching. "You did this all for me?"

"Yes." She answered dizzily and leaned in to kiss him, tangling her fingers into his hair. He moaned and she pulled away to start kissing his neck when his stomach growled. She laughed out loud and he blushed.

"Let's eat, we'll continue this later." She said and after one more kiss they both sat down and enjoyed their meal.

They talked and laughed together, occasionally sharing kisses, until it was nighttime and their only source of light was the moon above them. The food was long gone, and now they were just laying on the ground, kissing.

_Okay, this is it. _Cassie thought and pulled away from him. He opened his eyes and looked at her with a confused frown.

"There is one more thing before the day is over." She said softly and stood up. He followed without question. "But I need you to close your eyes again, yeah? And don't look. Please." He could see she was nervous and didn't know why, but nodded without a doubt. "Okay." She said and took a deep breath before pulling him close to her, waiting for him to close his eyes. When he did she moved them both a few feet away, to a flat and big rock that was directly above a deeper part of the lake.

She pulled away and smiled slightly when he frowned, upset at their lost of contact. She took another deep breath and slowly and unzipped her dress without making a sound, letting it fall to the ground. Her underwear followed, and after a second of hesitation she jumped into the water.

Fred, startled by the sudden sound, opened his eyes and gasped when he saw her clothes laying in a pile on the floor. He looked around him and then to the water, seeing her head emerge a few seconds later. He just stood there, wondering if what was happening was really what he was thinking that was happening, when she spoke.

"Are you going to stay there or are you going to join me?" She asked softly and he shook his head, coming back to his senses. With so transparent waters and the moonlight he was able to see most of her naked body, but when she jumped a bit before going underwater again and her breasts bounced freely in front of him, he finally started to undress. He didn't even register how fast he did it and a moment later he was jumping to go with her.

She had begun to swim lazily to the waterfall, and even if he was swimming as fast as he could to get to her, she passed it before he caught up and disappeared from his sight.

He moved even faster, if that was possible, swimming under the waterfall and appearing inside a cave. Once again he was completely mesmerized by the sight. The water appeared to be glowing under him, giving the place a natural light and making everything underwater completely visible. He spotted her a few feet ahead, with his back to him. He swam carefully and placed himself behind her, not touching yet. She could feel his breath tickling her ear, and couldn't help but lean back into him. She moaned at the glorious feeling of him naked against her back, and his hands that had encircled her waist quickly began to explore the rest of her body, making her squirm under his touch. When he couldn't take it anymore he turned her and crashed his mouth on hers in long and hungry kiss, only stopped by their moans of pleasure and the need to breathe.

After some time Fred pulled back to look at her in the eyes, asking her a question without words. She responded with a kiss, and a second later he stopped feeling water around them, shivering at the cold breeze of the cave.

"Did you think of everything?" He said with a smile when she rolled them so she was straddling him, making him get comfortable on the soft and blanket underneath them.

"Yes." She said as she leaned down to kiss his neck. "Everything." She insisted and he looked at her in the eyes, silently asking if she meant protection as well. She gave him a nod before resuming their kiss.

Their bodies joined moments later, and they achieved the ultimate state of bliss together.

When they were finished, Fred hugged her waist and rested his head on her chest, letting her massage his scalp softly with one hand, the other resting on his back.

"That was..." He began breathlessly.

"Amazing." She finished and smiled when he nodded.

"I can't compare it to anything else. I think I discovered the meaning of life while climaxing." She laughed loudly and he smiled.

"Climaxing is the meaning of life?" She asked and he shook his head.

"No, making love to you is." He answered honestly and she felt her eyes fill with tears. She pulled him completely on top of her and kissed him softly.

"I love you, Fred Weasley." She moaned out as he placed himself in her again and kissed her hungrily.

"And I love you."

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><p>From that moment Cassandra began to spend the night with Fred on his flat almost every day. But he understood that whenever Severus got a chance to visit her and Juliana, he was all she focused on. However, secretly he wished he could become part of that side of her life, but was still too scared to properly talk to Severus, so he kept postponing it, even if he knew that he wanted to share a family dinner with him.<p>

That's why one night of May he found himself alone in his bed, not being able to sleep, missing the heat of Cassie's body next to his. She was coming back tomorrow, most likely, or the day after that at most, because Severus never stayed for too long with them. He sighed and turned around, hoping that if he stopped looking at the empty side of the bed sleep would finally come to him.

In Brazil Cassandra's mind was filled with thoughts of Fred like his mind was filled with thoughts of her, but for a very different reason. She looked at her parents sitting in front of her in the couch, and tried to gather the courage to speak.

"Dad..." She began and he looked at her, signaling her to go on. "Okay. Yes. Okay, I'm just going to say it." She rubbed her forehead and took a deep breath. "I'm in love with Fred Weasley, and before you say anything, yes I know you already know because I'm not really discreet about it, quite the opposite actually. I love him, and I want everyone who can know to be aware of it. Okay, that being said... um... if I ever lost him, I know I wouldn't be able to bear it. And especially if I lost him because he doesn't know the truth." She had been looking down the whole time and when she lifted her face to meet Severus' eyes, she found a blank stare she was hoping she wouldn't get. It meant she wasn't going to figure out what he would say. "So... yes, what I mean is that I want to tell him about... um... _what you have to do._"

"Cassandra..." He began but she interrupted him. If he said anything that could dampen her courage, she was never going to say what she wanted to.

"No, dad. Just wait. Let me say what I want to say before you say no." She bit her thumb and looked at him. "I need him to know the truth because I won't be able to live knowing that he hates me, and he hates you because of a lie. I won't. And especially not when you're doing it because _he ordered you to. _I need him to know the truth, dad. I can't keep this from him." She sighed. "But... of course that also means telling George, because one does not function without the other. I can't tell Fred something like this and expect him to keep him from George because that's not how things work. They both need to know. Dad, I swear I love him more than any other boy or man I've loved before. I _need _him to know. I need them _both_ to know." She finished with a pleading tone.

He got up from his place on the couch without saying a word to her or her mother. Cassie looked at Juliana with a desperate look, hoping that she hadn't said something wrong and he was now angry at her. Juliana just shrugged, without giving her an answer. A few moments later he appeared on the room again, and she looked at him with tear filled eyes.

"Please, consider it." She pleaded with the strongest voice she could muster.

"There is nothing to consider, Cassandra." Severus answered emotionlessly and she felt the tears start to fall. She closed her eyes tightly and felt him grab her hand and place something cold on it. She opened her eyes in surprise and her eyes widened at the sight.

A small bottle with what appeared to be a bright mist inside. She knew instantly what it was. She looked up at him and felt her throat tighten.

"Dad..." She croaked out, hugging the bottle close to her heart. He hugged her and placed a kiss on top of her head.

"When it comes to your happiness, there is never anything to consider."

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><p><strong>Jeez... is is too bad? I don't totally hate it BUT... I don't know about you. It's like 95% fluff and the rest is something that is going to lead to a big thing... I guess? I don't know. If you want to tell me what you think, please do.<strong>

**It was never in my plans to update on April 1st in commemoration to the twins' birthday but as you can see, I included their birthday on this chapter as some tribute of sorts. So... yeah.**


	26. Chapter 26

**I don't wanna say it's all fluff again but sorry! It kind of is! This is sort of the build up for the last chapters, because if everything goes according to plan, there are only four left.**

**"**_How long are those going to be_**?" You may be wondering... My answer: **I honestly can't say.

**But... this story is supposed to be 30 chapters long... and I hope that's how it happens.**

**Anyway...**

**Sorry for the delay! It's just that college really sucks. **

**Ugh, growing up! What a load of crap. **

_**Am I right?**_

**Whatever, I know I am.**

**Also, thanks to **_Bleedingheart2XLoLa_ **for the follow!**

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><p>"Okay, do you have everything?" Juliana asked Cassie, who put her backpack on and secured her ponytail with a tug.<p>

"Yes." She answered with a nod. "Can we go now? We were supposed to go ten minutes ago." She asked eagerly. Juliana smiled as she grabbed the keys to the car.

"Yes, yes. We're going now." She answered and ushered her daughter to the front door. Once Juliana had dropped Cassie at Rosa's, she went back home and situated herself on her lab to begin a busy evening of potion making. The evening quickly turned into the night, and when she noticed the time, she opened her eyes wide.

"Fuck!" She cursed looking at her watch. "He should be calling in an hour... do I eat or do I shower?" She mumbled to herself with a frown. "I'm not even hungry." She decided for the latter and moved upstairs to her room. When she was drying her hair, the phone rang. The call was half an hour early, which was a strange occurrence in itself. Severus was strictly punctual on weekdays when he was teaching in Hogwarts. But today was a first day and...

_Oh, dear._

Juliana had forgotten that today was supposed to be Harry Potter's first day.

Harry Potter, as in Lily Evans son.

As in _same-eyes-as-his-mother_, Harry Potter.

She practically ran to the phone and answered before it rang a third time.

"Yes?" She asked a bit out of breath.

"I can't do it." A broken voice said from the other line and she bit her lip, shaking her head softly.

"Come home." She answered immediately.

"What?" Severus' mildly surprised voice replied.

"Come home. Now. I won't let you be alone, and if you don't come, I will go there. You know I damn well can." She heard a half hearted laugh and didn't resist the urge to smile.

"I'll be there in a minute. I love you."

"Love you too." She answered before hanging up. She sat cross legged in the bed, waiting for him. He had a portkey that brought him directly to their room, and true to his word, a minute later he was there. The moment he appeared, Juliana moved faster than humanly possible and before he knew it, he was sinking into her embrace.

She pulled Severus into her arms and he rested his face on the crook of her neck. The feeling of his soft lips softly caressing the skin there had her shivering and sighing in pleasure. She ran her hands through his hair and his arms tightened around her.

They moved to the bed without speaking, and tangling into each other once they were situated in their respective places. He rested his head on her chest and let himself relax under the soothing way she was massaging his scalp with one hand. The other hand was rubbing his back, while both of his were encircling her waist.

Juliana didn't speak first, she just waited for him to be ready.

"I love you." He whispered hoarsely after a while. She smiled and kissed the top of his head.

"I love you too, darling."

"How do you do it?" He asked without looking at her and she frowned, confused.

"Do what?" She asked softly.

"An hour ago I was convinced I wasn't going to be able to deal with _the promise_ I made and now I'm here with you... and I can't help but feel that anything is possible and that I can do everything... as long as I have you." He said honestly and moved to rest his head on the pillow right next to hers, both facing each other, still hugging.

Juliana felt her eyes sting and smiled softly at him before leaning in and kissing him deeply. He responded eagerly, grabbing her thigh and draping her leg around his waist, pulling her closer.

She moaned and bit his bottom lip, making him groan in return. Their hands were touching everywhere and everything, both desperate for the feeling of the other's body.

After they were done, Juliana was lying naked completely on top of him, much to his delight. She wasn't very heavy so her weight wasn't a bother to him at all, quite the contrary. It was a perfect way to have her as close as possible without being _in_ her, and Severus always enjoyed it tremendously. So did Juliana, who had decided that kissing his neck while caressing his chest was an amazing way to spend her time. Severus wasn't complaining, though, and his own hands were busy enough on her backside and the close areas.

After a controlled make out session that did not lead to anything else, Severus decided he was finally ready to speak. Now they had changed positions and she was resting her back on his chest, holding the hand that was hugging her waist.

"It's going to be hard. So hard." He whispered dejectedly.

"Yes, it is." Juliana replied honestly. "But you know I firmly believe that this is not something you are not capable of doing."

"He's looks just like_ him_." He spat and she inwardly cursed. _Of course he is_, she thought. Now that surely had brought back memories. Bad memories.

"He's not him." She reminded him and Severus sighed deeply.

"I know. His eyes prove otherwise."

"Are they really...?" She began to say carefully but didn't actually want to ask it.

"Identical to Lily's? Yes, they are." He answered and she felt his hand begin to rub her side as he pulled her closer. _Comfort. He needs comfort_. She thought. So she turned and pulled his chest close to hers at the same time their lips connected. He melted into the kiss and she made sure to pour all her support and love into it.

_I'm with you on this. You are not alone._

He apparently got the message because a small smile formed in his mouth, but as fast as it came, it disappeared.

"What? What are you thinking?" She asked softly as she moved a strand of hair behind his ear. Severus' eyes closed and he grabbed her hand, giving it a soft kiss and leaving it next to his face.

"The sorting... He's a Gryffindor. It made me remember his father being sorted into Gryffindor after Lily..." He said before rubbing his eyes and letting out a sigh. "I'm sorry." He said and rolled to his side, but didn't let go of her and ended up pulling her over him again. She rested her face on his chest and intertwined her fingers with his, squeezing softly.

"Don't be. You have nothing to be sorry for. It's completely natural that you feel this way, because this has triggered painful memories for you and has ended up creating a stressful situation." Juliana said and he smiled at the sound of her _no-nonsense_ voice. "I just want to be able to help you through this, and I want you to tell me when you need someone. All I ask is for you to not bottle up your feelings because it will hurt you and it will hurt me as well." He kissed the top of her head and sighed.

"I won't, love."


	27. Chapter 27

**Okay... so, I tried to rewrite some of the first chapters _again,_ and because I spent like ten days without updating until I posted the last chapter, I'm posting this one to compensate.**

**Feel free to leave your thoughts on the story if you have time, I'd really appreciate it.**

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><p>Cassandra was laying sprawled on her bed, frowning deeply. For the past two days, she had tried to find excuses to postpone what she knew she had to do. And she had practically begged for it! But now, analyzing all the possible outcomes of her situation, she had pretty much lost all the nerve she had managed to get before. But now Severus was gone and Fred was very aware of that fact. He was going to be expecting her to go to London, and Cassie knew that if she waited any longer to see him, the next time they met she would blurt out the truth and mess everything up.<p>

She sighed loudly and rubbed her eyes with excessive force, as if forcing her mind to think about something else. As she pondered the pros and cons of the plan she had begun to form in her mind, her phone rang.

"Hello?" She asked after she flipped it open.

"Hey baby." Fred's cheery voice sounded on the other line and she bit back a groan and the urge to curse out loud. "We closed the shop already, do you wanna come?"

_He has a perfect timing, the bastard_, she thought.

"Sure, give me a few minutes, I was just about to take a shower." She answered as she got up from her bed and started to walk to the bathroom.

"Or..." He said and she could practically feel him smirking. "...you could come right now and take a shower here. You know, I actually need to take a shower as well. What do you say?" She smiled and rolled her eyes, sure that if he was in front of her, he would have winked.

_There is an important matter at hand, focus. F-o-c-u-s._

"I think I'll just take a shower here, yeah?" She said and closed her eyes tightly when her voice sounded unsure. He was going to notice it in a second.

"What's wrong?" Fred asked, any trace of his playful tone completely gone.

_This is it._

"I just... we need to talk." She said with a sigh and leaned back into the wall. "I need to talk to you both. It's important."

"Did something happen? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Is your mum okay? Because if-" He began to ramble desperately but she cut him off.

"No, no. It's... I can't talk to you about it over the phone, yeah? I'll be there in half an hour. Just... get ready to go out. We need to go somewhere." She said and rubbed her forehead.

"Cassie, you're freaking me out." Fred said with a nervous tone in her voice and she wanted to hit herself for worrying him.

"Don't, it's okay. We just need to talk about something important. I'll be there in half an hour, okay? I love you." There was silence for a few seconds before he replied.

"Yeah... okay. I love you too." He answered and she threw the phone on the bed.

She spent fifteen minutes in the shower and another fifteen getting ready. She put on jeans and sneakers, and one of Fred's old Quidditch jerseys she absolutely loved to wear.

She went downstairs to tell Juliana she was leaving, and after giving her a kiss on the cheek and putting Rocko on his travelling bag, she touched the portkey and disappeared. A few seconds later she was standing on the twins' flat with a very nervous looking Fred Weasley staring at her. She put the bag on the floor to let Rocko out, who immediately ran to the couch and fell asleep.

"Fred-" Cassie began to say but was interrupted by his lips clashing on hers and his arms holding her tightly. She felt her shoulders relax and melted into the kiss, moving her hands to his neck and opening her mouth for him.

When they parted they were panting, and Fred rested his forehead against hers.

"You're wearing it." He said breathlessly.

"What?" She asked, still dizzy from the kiss.

"My shirt. You're wearing it." He explained, hooking his finger on the bottom, as if to prove what he was saying.

"Yeah, you know it's my favourite." She said with a small smile and pecked him on the lips before trying to pull away, but he didn't let her. Not like she put much of a fight, either. She moved her arms to hug his waist and rested her head on his shoulder.

"I know. It means you're not breaking up with me." She pulled away and looked at him with wide eyes.

"WHAT?"

"Well, you never said no to having a shower together before so I figured something was wrong... and then you started talking all weird and said you needed to talk so... I kind of began preparing myself for the worst." Fred said with a low voice and looked down. She hunched her shoulders and looked at him with a sad expression. She walked the few steps that were between them and grabbed his hands on hers, making up look up. He was biting his lip and looked worried.

"I swear it has nothing to do with me breaking up with you. I love you too much for that." She said reassuringly but he didn't miss the way she phrased it. However, he didn't voice his concern it out loud. Instead he just leaned forward and kissed her again. They just kept going until George appeared in the room, his hair still wet from the shower.

"Ugh, not while I'm in the room, not while I'm in the room!" He said covering his eyes and they laughed. Rocko perked up at the sound of his voice and jumped from the couch to greet him. George picked him up and let him lick his face while wagging his tail happily.

"_Ugh! Not while I'm in the room!_" Cassie said mimicking him and George narrowed his eyes at her and left the room. Fred laughed loudly and nuzzled her cheek.

"I love you." He whispered, making her smile.

"I love you too." She responded and they pulled away, moving to follow George to the kitchen.

"I'd give you a hug, but you're covered in my dog's saliva." Cassie said smiling to George, who laughed sarcastically.

"You are just jealous he loves me more than you." He said with a smirk and her smile faded.

"He doesn't. Shut up." She said with a frown and took Rocko from his arms. "He loves _me_ more than anyone else. Don't you, baby?" She said sweetly and Rocko barked and wagged his tail in response. "Told you." She said to George with a satisfied smile and he rolled his eyes.

"As fun as it is watching you fight over who Rocko loves more..." Fred began to say. "I think it's my duty to... point out the elephant in the room, if I'm using that term correctly." Cassie sighed and put Rocko on the floor.

_What a way to kill the joy_, she thought.

"Yeah, you are. Um... sit." She said motioning him to join his twin at the table before she sat opposite to them. "Umm..." She said, looking at her hands. "As you know, my father is working for both sides." Fred and George frowned and nodded, trying to figure out where this was going. "Yeah, okay. Um... there is something that's going to happen. And it's huge. It's... it's going to change everything, and you need to know. But this..." She looked up, moving from one pair of eyes to the other. "You can't tell anyone. And I mean_ anyone_. You aren't even supposed to know this, but I just... I really need you to know the truth."

"Cassie, you're not making much sense." Fred said softly, moving to grab her trembling hands on his.

"I know, but I promise it will all make sense once you see what I need to show you. But you need to come somewhere with me in order to do that."

"Okay." They both said without hesitating. She sighed, a bit relieved, and got up from her chair, the twins mirroring her action. "Yes. Well..." She looked behind her to see Rocko asleep on the bed he had on the flat, food and water next to him. "Um... let's go then." She said and extended both of her hands to them. They both intertwined her fingers with hers and moved close to her side. One second they were in the kitchen, the next they were in front on what appeared a cottage.

"Where are we?" George asked as she moved to open the gate and motioned them to walk in.

"This is my uncle Henry's cottage. It's a small village and it really goes unnoticed, it's a very private place." She said as they reached the front door. She took a key from her pocket and unlocked the door. Once inside, the twins were greeted with a view they weren't expecting.

In the middle of the living room there was what appeared to be a _basin _that emanated a soft white glow.

"What's going on, Cassie?" Fred asked with a frown, turning to her. She sighed and moved to the center of the room, looking at the Pensieve thoughtfully. They moved to either side of her, patiently waiting for an answer.

"I told you I needed to show you something. As I'm sure you've noticed, this is a Pensieve." She said and pulled a vial from her pocket. "And this is what I need you to see." She poured the contents of the vial on the Pensieve and watched as the memories whirled and changed fast. "You _need_ to see it for yourself. Just trust me on this. I will answer anything you want when you're done." They looked a bit apprehensive but nodded.

They were about to submerge into it but Cassie grabbed Fred's forearm. He looked at her confused before she pulled him into a kiss.

"I love you, I really do. Never doubt it." She said with her eyes closed and he nodded.

"I love you too, Cassie."

Cassie had never used a Pensieve herself, so she didn't really know how long this kind of thing took. She walked to the sofa and curled in it, patiently waiting for them to be done.

She hoped they understood what was going to happen. Logically, there was no reason for them to hate her. After all, on Severus' memories it was clear that this was Dumbledore's command. And there was nothing to be done about it. But what if for some reason they thought it was all a lie and it was all part of some kind of plan Severus had created to kill Dumbledore? Well... they weren't going to think _that _probably but... she couldn't know what their reaction was going to be.

But focusing on the best case scenario, they were going to be two more people that would know her father was not a bad man when the time came. So that made... what? Seven people? Herself, her mother, her grandmother, Albus, Tonks... and now Fred and George.

_Seven_.

Seven people versus the whole wizarding world. That was bound to be hard.

Her eyes filled with tears and once again she found herself crying at the unfair situation his father was forced to live. And now Fred and George were forced to live an unfair situation as well, and it was because of her own selfishness.

How would Molly and Arthur look at Fred when they started to believe he dated the daughter of such a _traitor? _Would they pity him? _God, how was Ginny going to react?_ Cassie absolutely loved her, and already considered the sister she never had.

She wished life wasn't so complicated for her and for everyone she loved. She cursed Voldemort, and pureblood supremacy, and everyone who thought muggles were less than wizards.

She was sobbing quietly with her hands covering her eyes when she felt another pair of hands prying hers from her face. She quickly looked up, only to see Fred and George kneeling in front of her, eyes red and sad frowns on their faces.

"I'm so sorry, love." Fred said softly, drying her tears with his thumb. "I am so sorry."

She threw herself at their arms and hugged them close as sobs shook her body. They held her tightly and rubbed her back soothingly.

"We never..." George said and his voice quivered. "We never knew how invested your father's life was on this. It's just... it's so _unfair_." He finished with a frown.

"Tell me about it." She said with a sarcastic laugh as she pulled away. The three were sitting cross-legged on the floor, the fireplace and Pensieve being the only objects providing light to the room. "Do you have anything you want to ask?" She said as she tried to dry her tears with her hands.

"Who else knows?" George asked softly.

"Well, Albus, me and my mom, obviously. But, apart from us, my grandmother and Tonks know as well. And now you, and that's about it." He nodded but kept quiet. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, in fact, it actually seemed necessary.

"So that's why his hand looked like that." Fred said absent-mindedly after a while.

"Guys... I need to ask you to do something." Cassie said, sitting up straight.

"What is it?"

"I know there isn't too many people who know about me and my mom but..." She took a deep breath and Fred's hand found hers, squeezing softly. She smiled weakly at him. "When _it _happens..." Her voice broke and Fred moved to her side in an instant, pulling her close to him and caressing her hair. She leaned into him and closed her eyes. "You are going to be linked to me and... I need you to make everyone believe that me and my mom disappeared, and that you don't know where we are. And Fred, I need you to pretend that we're not together anymore."

"But we'll know where you are?" He asked with a slight edge on his voice.

"Of course you will. But no one can know. And I know sometimes it will hurt and you will want to tell people the truth but please... I'm sure you've seen how important it is that no one knows. You weren't supposed to, either. I just... I needed you to know for selfish reasons. I couldn't bear the thought of losing you. It was too much." She said with a broken voice as the tears began to fall again. Fred pulled her closer to him as her hand moved to grab one of George's, pulling him close to her as well.

"We should make an Unbreakable Vow." Fred said to George, who nodded in agreement.

"What? No. I can't ask you to do that." Cassie said and moved to get out of their embrace, but they held her on place.

"Well, technically you didn't ask, we kinda decided it on our own so..." George said with a slight mocking tone on his voice.

"True. And besides, don't tell us Tonks didn't make one when she found out." Fred said, watching her stammer to find an answer.

"Tonks did not make an Unbreakable Vow. And that's completely true." She answered looking him in the eyes, trying to prove she was telling the truth. He narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.

"Uh-huh..." He said with a slight smirk. "So, Tonks did not swear to keep the secret?" He asked looking at her with a fake innocent look. She averted her eyes and squeaked something neither understood. "Is that a no?" She squealed something again and he huffed. "Spill it out." She closed her eyes and sighed.

"She didn't make an Unbreakable Vow, she did something else. Okay, now that that's out of the way we can go home..." She said and tried to get up, only to be pulled back by the twins. She looked at them with pleading eyes.

"Why didn't she make an Unbreakable Vow and what did she do?" George asked.

"Ugh!" She groaned, burying her face on her hands. "Stop asking! You know I can't lie to you when you're so close!" She said mostly to herself and Fred and George smiled at each other.

"Darling, tell us, please." Fred said and she pouted at him.

"I dislike you a lot." She said with a huff. "She made an Sacred Oath because it's more effective. There. I answered your questions and now we're done." She said and they both looked at her with identical eyebrows raised, making her sigh in defeat. "A Sacred Oath is another kind of vow. But it doesn't need a third-party to be completed, and, depending on how you phrase your oath, it can _really_ prevent you from doing something you or can't or don't want to do."

"Give us an example." George said and she groaned.

"You're killing me. Okay. For example, you can swear to not tell something when you're making an Unbreakable Vow and if you say that you die, but... you'd die after you say it so... the damage is done. And you can even not die if someone has access to your mind because well... you technically did not _say_ it. Unbreakable Vows can be stretched with much more ease than Sacred Oaths because you can only vow to _not_ _do or to do _something. With Sacred Oaths... well, using the same example, you can swear to die even if you are even _considering_ saying that thing you weren't supposed to say, or if someone even tries to get into your mind. It really all depends on the way you phrase it, as I told you. But because of that, is much more dangerous."

"And you know how to do it?" George asked her, looking at Fred.

"Yeah, it's really not that... wait. No. No, you're not. Stop it. Don't look at each other like that!" She cried out, turning her head fast to look at each of them.

"Cassie... it's not really your call if _we _want to do it." Fred said softly and she shook her head.

"It's too dangerous. You could... what if..." She said and began crying again, making them feel guilty for pushing her a bit too far.

They held her close and waited until her sobs had calmed down.

"If it's dangerous... then we make it not dangerous." George said with a reassuring smile and she sniffed.

"What?" She asked in a whisper.

"Well... if it's all in the way you _phrase it_... we could find a way to make it less dangerous." Fred said, catching up to his twin's line of thought.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked, unsure.

"Absolutely." They answered immediately.

"We love you, Cassie. And this whole thing... you, your mother, what your father has to do... is a secret that has to be protected by all means." George said and she smiled weakly.

"Thank you. I love you too." She said, pulling them closer.


	28. Chapter 28

**Okay people! Here's the new chapter. This is officially the last one covering Severus and Juliana specifically, because chronologically after this comes Chapter 1.**

**Now my dears, I'd like to thank **_FreyaHawthorne, RaeNSesshy4Life, TheForgetfulTimeLord, waterlily0777, Harry's Love Can Conquer All, moon-night-ninja _**and** _sarah-louise.94 _**for the follows and favorites! You rock.**

**Warning (kind of a joke): There are lots of sighs on this chapter, but given the situation, I think it's okay.**

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><p>"It's worse for you, isn't it?" Cassandra suddenly said with a dry laugh that quickly transformed into a grimace. She was sitting on the couch, looking at the wall without really seeing.<p>

"What do you mean?" Juliana asked from her spot on the kitchen. Cassie turned slightly and looked her from the corner of her eye.

"The feeling that something terrible is about to happen to him. I know it's worse for you." She said with a sigh and turned to face the wall again. "Does it hurt too bad? The ring, I mean."

"It's not that it hurts... it's more like a strong sense of dread that increases or decreases according to the situation." She sighed and stopped what she was doing. "It's been getting stronger and stronger this past few months but today it's the worst it has been since I started using it."

"Today's the Third Task, and dad's Mark is getting darker."

"I know, I haven't forgotten."

Of course she hadn't. She talked about it with Severus religiously about it every night. They knew what it meant, but Severus was still not willing to talk about it as if it really was the immediate future. He still said to her that they didn't know what was going to happen, and that _maybe it meant nothing_.

But it did. It really did. It meant _He _was coming back_. _And _that_ meant that Severus was most likely going to be resuming his duties as a double spy. She couldn't blame him for not wanting to fully believe what was happening. If it was her in his situation, she didn't believe she could handle it as well as he did. She felt a hole created by despair on her chest because of the sole _thought_ of him doing that work again... and he actually had to _do it._

She remembered the first night he discovered the Mark was beginning to get darker.

_Juliana was reading a book on her bed, patiently waiting for Severus call, when said man materialized in front of her. He was soaked from head to toe, as if he had been standing on the pouring rain. She got up and in an instant she was holding him on her arms while he clung to her like she was going to disappear any minute._

_She noticed he was shivering and, after taking his hand, led him to the bathroom. He just stood there while she filled the bathtub with warm water, and didn't move when she started taking his clothes off, save for the slight trembling of his body. Something was very wrong, she knew, because he only came when it was like that and well... because of the obviously off way he was acting.  
><em>_She grabbed his hand again and moved him to the bathtub, where he placed himself and sighed at the relaxing feeling of the warm water on his muscles. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back.  
>Juliana began to take her own clothes off, leaving them on a messy pile on the floor but far enough from Severus' wet ones. She moved him forward and placed herself behind him, his back resting on her chest. His eyes were closed still, but this time he leaned back his head on her shoulder and intertwined his hands with the ones hugging his middle.<em>

_She knew tonight was not going to be about sex, it was going to be solely about comfort and reassurance. She had seen had been witness of situations like this one many times before and was now fully able to recognize the sings and knew perfectly how to act._

_Severus, for some reason she didn't know yet, was having a very hard time. If he had come to her he was definitely going to tell her, but she had to give him time._

_They spent quite some time like that, caressing each other, kissing softly for long periods of time. When their arousal was too much to handle, they made love slowly, only to come back to their original position once they were done and the water was changed._

_She felt herself beginning to fall asleep, and pulled him closer to her. She leaned her head back and made sure the water didn't stop being warm and the tub behind her neck felt like a comfortable pillow. When she was sure she was going to lose consciousness, he spoke._

_"Juli?" Severus whispered and she opened her eyes, now fully awake. He only called her that when something was _awfully_ wrong._

_"Yes, love? I'm here." She answered and tightened her arms and legs around him, placing a kiss on his neck for further reassurance._

_"I discovered something today." _

_"Yeah? What is it?" She said as her hands began to rub circles on his chest and sides._

_"The Mark is getting darker." He said without any noticeable emotion on her voice and she stopped what she was doing._

_The Mark getting darker could only mean _one _thing, and she didn't want to believe it. She took a deep breath and composed herself before moving her hand slowly to his left arm, caressing it softly. When she reached his hand, she intertwined her fingers with his._

_"Show me." She whispered against his ear and felt him tremble. He slowly turned his arm around and she guided it closer to her face._

_It was true. The mark was darker. _

_Not much more darker, but definitely not as pale as she had seen it the last time she paid attention to it, about one week before. She slowly brought it even closer to her face, to her lips, but when she was about to kiss it, he stopped her._

_"Please, don't. I don't want your lips touching _it_." He said but did not remove his arm from her grasp._

_"Severus, this is a part of you. A part of what made you who you are today, a part of what was necessary for us both to be together right now, right here. I love you, and I refuse to love any part of you less than any other." He leaned into her even more now as a sigh escaped his lips, and she took her chance to leave a small kiss on top of his skin. His breath hitched and he closed his eyes tightly. _

_"I love you. Every part of you. For better and for worse." She whispered and he finally turned around to meet her lips in a hungry kiss. She didn't waste any time and before he could even begin to touch her, he found himself on their bed, both perfectly dry and perfectly naked._

_They resumed the kissing and made love once again. When they were done they held each other close, not speaking._

_"You were soaked." Juliana said softly as she moved his hair away from his eye and behind his ear._

_"It was raining."_

_"Why were you in the rain?"_

_"Because the Forbidden Forest is outdoors." She rolled her eyes._

_"Why where you in the Forbidden Forest on a rainy night?" _

_"Because I didn't want to destroy anything valuable from my chambers by accident."_

_"You went to the forest to blow up stuff?" She asked with an eyebrow raised and he nodded with his face buried on her shoulder. She caressed his back and sighed as well._

_"Well? Did you do too much damage?"_

_"Not really. I mostly wanted to see you and the rain was cold enough to help ease the anger."_

_"Good then. You should have come here first, anyway. I know of a very good thing that helps you ease the anger quickly." She felt him smile against her skin and smirked herself._

_"That you do."_

That had been a good night, apart from the fact that they know knew that danger was looming and soon everything was going to change. They had a few more nights like that, but after Harry's name was chosen by the goblet, arguments about the nature of that situation started to become very common between them. Juliana was absolutely sure that Harry wasn't capable of doing something as advanced as that, but Severus wasn't.

_"You are defending him." Severus spat with narrowed eyes._

_"Severus! He is a kid! There is no way he did that by himself!" She said, exasperated._

_"I never said he did it alone, he could have gotten help." He said with crossed arms, completely sure of his point._

_"From who?! Who could have helped him do something like that! This is more than advanced magic, Severus! Maybe you think it was Ron, his best friend? Or Hermione? She definitely is bright, isn't she? Well, sorry to burst your bubble, darling, but THEY ARE NOT CAPABLE OF SOMETHING LIKE THAT EITHER. This was made by a very experienced wizard, you know it very well."_

_"I know very well that Potter loves getting attention..." He said with disdain on his voice and something clicked on her mind. The way he always referred to him as **Potter**_ _and never Harry..._

_"He is not James, Severus!" She cried out and he looked at her with slightly opened eyes, as if he was a little kid that had been caught with his hand on the cookie jar. "Oh, God." She said grabbing the sides of her head and sitting on the bed. He remained still with his arms crossed and no expression on his face, but refused to look at her way. "Severus..." She said lowly and he clenched his jaw._

_"Don't." He said coldly."Don't even try.__"_

_"Severus, he is not James." She said again but this time with more determination and walked a few steps until she was directly in front of him. She was tall but he was taller, and she had to tilt her head back to look at him in the eyes. He did not meet her look. "You know I will never ask you to forget about what he did to you, or to forgive him because we both know he was never sorry. Neither was Sirius, or Remus, or Pettigrew. But that does not mean that Harry is your chance to try and level things up because of what James did to you. He doesn't deserve it. He never chose to be what he is now. I know he **looks** shockingly like his father but that does not mean he **is** like him. James Potter leaked arrogance, Harry is just a kid with a dangerous destiny he doesn't even fully comprehend yet. I know it's hard for you to think about that when you see him every day on his Gryffindor robes, with that hair and those round glasses. I know it takes you back to the past but please, I beg you, try to remember that he's a different person." Juliana finished with a pleading whisper and Severus finally looked at her. She was frowning slightly and her expression was sad._

_He stayed silent for a few more seconds before swallowing hard._

_"I'm sorry." He whispered, his tone showed that he did not want to say it, and looked down. The corners of Juliana's mouth quirked upwards and she moved even closer to him. She uncrossed his arms and intertwined her fingers with his. Severus still did not look up so she bended her knees a bit and moved her face under his, their eyes finally meeting. She kissed his lips softly for a second and let go of his hands to hug his waist. He hugged her back and lost himself on the embrace. She pulled away a bit until their noses were touching and their breaths were mixing._

_"I love you... so much." She said before closing the distance and kissing him with all she had. He moved one of his hands to the back of her neck, burying it on her hair, and the other to her back, pulling her closer. Hers were now clenched on the sides of his shirt above his hips._

_"I love you too." He said and kissed her forehead. "I might need a little help with this... situation."_

_"I'll be with you when you need me, love."_

_"I know, thank you."_

The whole thing was a very slow process, especially due to the fact that even if Harry wasn't James, he still shared a few traits with his father. And the adoration he felt towards Sirius did not make it any easier, either.

Juliana grabbed her cup of tea from the counter with a sigh and started to walk towards Cassie. However, she froze mid step and the cup fell to the floor, shattering into pieces. Cassie turned abruptly to see what was happening, and found herself seeing the scary image of her wide-eyed mother standing on the middle of the room, pale as a sheet, with trembling hands. Juliana swallowed and slowly turned her left hand, carefully rolling back the sleeve of her shirt to expose her forearm, as if waiting something to suddenly appear there.

"Mom, what's going on?" Cassandra asked worriedly, walking to where she was.

"It's..." Juliana began to say with a raspy voice and coughed to clear her throat. "It's... the feeling of dread... it's... and I feel something. It's like an itch..." She said shakily and ran her index finger through her skin, like she was trying to test something out.

"What does that mean?" Cassie asked warily, taking a step back and swallowing. Juliana did not answer. "Mom. _**What does it mean?**_" She asked again, clearly on edge. Juliana looked up, her eyes beginning to water.

"When I can feel any trace of what he's feeling it's because... it is _too_ _strong_ and _too_ _powerful._"

"Mom... don't say that because he would only feel something on his left forearm if he was being summoned and..." Cassandra began to say but her voice broke at the end. Tears were now beginning to fall from her eyes. "There is only one _being _that is able to do that. And if he is being summoned it means that..." Juliana nodded and she began crying too.

"He is back. I'm so sorry." Cassandra shook her head repeatedly and closed her eyes tightly. Juliana hugged her and held her while they both cried.

"You need be there with him, mom. Go." Cassie said as she pulled away. Juliana nodded and dried her tears.

Minutes later she was ready to go, while Cassie sat on the couch, looking crestfallen.

"Are you gonna be okay on your own?" Juliana asked her after she kissed her forehead.

"No, but I will ask Rosa to come." Juliana nodded and hugged her tightly.

"Tell him I love him, please." Cassie said as tears began to fall down her cheeks again.

"I will, Cassie."

...

Juliana had been waiting for him on his bedchamber for over an hour now, and was about to have a mental breakdown. The feeling of dread was more powerful than ever before, and she couldn't help but cry and hope that everything was okay, at least for now.

He arrived minutes after the clock signaled that she had been there for two hours. She was laying down hugging his pillow tightly, inhaling his scent, when the door opened. She practically bolted from the bed and appeared in front of him in less than a second. He was surprised to see her there, and did not dare to move. She grabbed his left arm before he could do anything to stop her and lifted his sleeve.

Right there, just like she expected it to be, was a very black and very alive-looking Dark Mark.

She let out a wail and threw herself at him, hugging his neck and forcing him to take a few steps back until he felt the wall behind him. Severus hadn't said a word yet, still surprised by her being in his room.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." She repeated against his skin and he finally returned the hug. She then moved her head too fast and then she was kissing him in a way he had never been before.

Not when they reunited after Voldemort, not like any of the times they kissed while climaxing together. He suddenly felt what she was feeling, her love for him, her worry, her desire, _everything. _He decided that this was the best feeling he ever had the pleasure of experience and pulled her up, tangling her legs on his waist, any other worries forgotten for the time being. She was grabbing both sides of his face, as if she was making sure he was not going to pull away. He didn't, not until they both needed air.

"What was that?" He asked breathlessly, resting his forehead against hers. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was also labored.

"That was my fault." She said, her tone apologetic. "I accidentally enhanced the power of the spell on the rings and made us feel what the other was feeling. I wasn't even thinking about it, I just wanted to be closer to you than ever. I will remove it, don't worry."

"No!" He cried out and she opened her eyes in surprise. "Don't. Please. Unless you want to." She smiled softly and shook her head.

"I don't want to, either. That was the best feeling in the world."

"Yes." He said with a smile before giving her a quick kiss on her swollen and red lips. "It was." He finally put her down and she fixed her rumpled clothes with her hands as best as she could without magic. After that the silence became uncomfortable, and they avoided looking at each other.

"We need to talk about it." Juliana said and he sighed.

"Yes, we do. Can we lie down? I'm really tired." She nodded and they both went to the bed, taking their clothes off and covering themselves with the blankets. Juliana curled up against him and rested her head on his chest, focusing on his heartbeat. It was slightly faster than normal, but she expected that.

"Something terrible happened, right?" She whispered and he sighed.

"A few terrible things happened, actually." She closed her eyes tightly and brought him closer to her.

"Just tell me already and let's get this over with." He nodded even if she didn't see him and began telling her what had happened.

When he was done, Juliana had pulled away from him and was staring at the ceiling, her arms limp on her sides.

"A lot is gonna change now." She said without showing any emotion.

"I'm afraid so." Severus answered as he looked at her thoughtfully. She moved her head to the side and made eye contact with him.

"You're not alone this time, Severus. You've got _us._" She said and turned her body completely to hug him.

"I know." He replied kissing her hair and rubbing her back. He was silent a few moments. "Juliana... there is something we will have to do."

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><p><strong><strong>In case you don't guess what that something is, because I don' think I ever clarified it, it's telling The Order the truth once they form it again, because Tonks and Albus are the only ones that currently know (by currently I mean during the time this chapter happened), and they need to tell the others (and by the others I don't mean everyone, just Molly, Arthur, Lupin, Sirius, Moody and Minerva. And after that, the kids.)<strong>**

**Man, I shouldn't feel like I need to explain everything because that means I suck at writing but if you didn't get the ring part at the beginning, remember what Dumbledore said on Chapter 3:**

**_"_**_The ring on Severus hand has a complicated spell that allows him to wear it without anyone noticing. Perception Spells are very common and easy, but they can also be easily broken. For this one to work the casting of the spell was very difficult, since we needed to be able to fool ___You Know Who_ himself. _**_It also has a bonding spell that has allowed us to help both Severus and Juliana more than once, when it was very needed."_**


	29. Chapter 29

**Hell...o. This one is long. Long long long longer than ever. It's so long that this story is now over 100K words. Jeez. It covers a lot, that's why it's so long. Hope it doesn't get too hard to read. Final chapter, and such. It has fluff, important stuff, sad parts, romantic parts, funny parts, things that will matter on the future, things that will not matter ever again!**

**Also, bolded lines are meant to be in portuguese, remember?**

**As usual, I'd like to thank **_Bruna Snape, SiobhanPhelps, TAKRIM, poisedrose, jdmiller10, FredandLili, jjchickybabe _**a****nd**_ overlordred _**for the follows and favorites! Virtual hugs for ya'll!**

**Disclaimer: There are lines that were taken from the book so I obviously did not write them.**

**Hopefully you'll enjoy it.**

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><p>"Doesn't feel too good, does it?" Juliana asked Fred and George as she placed two cups of warm tea in front of each one. They were currently staying with her and Cassie in their house in Brazil.<p>

Cassie was laying between Fred's legs on the couch, one of his arms hugging her waist and the other caressing her hair. George was sitting on one of the chairs and Juliana on the other.

"What?" George asked absent-mindedly, taking a sip of his tea.

"Knowing what's going to happen and not being able to do anything to stop it." Cassandra answered for her mother with a tired voice and closed her eyes, leaning back further into Fred's chest.

"No... it doesn't." He answered with a sigh.

"I'm sorry I'm making you go through this." Cassie said in an apologetic tone after a while, catching the twins' attention. Fred kissed her neck and hugged her more tightly.

"Don't be. The other option was much more terrible than this. Thank you." He said soothingly and she managed to smile softly.

"Your tea's gone cold." Cassie said looking at Fred's untouched cup on the table.

"I'll make you another, I welcome the distraction." Juliana said and stood up from the chair, but the second she did she felt a wave of sorrow hit her with so much force that her knees wobbled. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she felt like she was going to faint. Cassie stood up from her place and practically ran to where she was, Fred and George close behind.

"Mom, are you okay? Mom?" She asked desperately but Juliana did not answer, instead she tried to take a step forward but ended up falling on her knees. Cassie kneeled with her, panicking. Juliana clutched her chest and took heavy breaths, closing her eyes tightly.

"What's going on?" George asked, scared.

"Mom... it's...?" Cassie asked but did get to finish her sentence because her mother looked at her with the answer already in her eyes.

"It's done." She said with clenched teeth and everyone suddenly felt the weight of the world resting on their shoulders.

...

"How is she?" Fred asked Cassie from his spot on the kitchen counter as she appeared on the doorway.

"It's bad. Really bad. She had to take a potion to sleep." She said walking to Fred and placing herself between his legs, hugging his waist.

"What... was that about? Why did she get like that?" George asked carefully, not wanting to upset her.

"Remember that time when Dumbledore told you their rings were connected and helped when the other was in trouble?" They nodded and she turned so she could see George, Fred's arms encircling her middle. "Well, when something bad happened to one of them, the other would feel a sense of uneasiness that was stronger or weaker depending on the situation. But a while back they created a bond between each other that occasionally makes them feel what the other is feeling, if that feeling is strong enough. What my mother felt was what my father was feeling in that moment, and that's how she knew."

"This is awful." George said rubbing his eyes.

"Yes, it is." She disentangled herself from Fred's arms, much to his dismay. "You need to go back to your flat. News like this travel fast and I don't doubt someone will be informing you and expecting an answer in no time."

"I was hoping you wouldn't think about that." Fred said dejectedly as he jumped off the counter. "We will be coming here anytime we can. Promise." He said and George nodded in agreement.

"Remember what I told you. From now on... we're not together anymore."

"For everyone else. We're not together for everyone else. We're still together for us." Cassie nodded with a smile and caressed his cheek before giving him a soft and short kiss.

"Take care, yeah?" She said to both of them as they were getting ready to leave. They nodded and hugged her tightly. "God, I love you so much." She said as they pulled away, drying her tears.

"We love you too." They answered together. George gave her a kiss on the forehead and Fred one on the lips. And with that... they left.

...

It was 3 in the morning on July 1st when Severus appeared on the house. Juliana was alone, Cassandra was currently staying with Fred and George on Henry's cottage, trying to spend as much time together as possible. She was sitting in the kitchen, a full cup of coffee staring back at her, her ring right next to it.

When she heard him appear she looked up so fast her neck hurt, and walked to him without even controlling her legs. At first sight he didn't look physically hurt, but that was because the only thing she could see was his face. He looked like he hadn't sleep in days, because most likely he hadn't, and his eyes held something she wished with all her heart she didn't have to see.

_Broken. _

She hoped he wasn't broken beyond repair, but even if he was, that was not going to stop her from trying to make everything better. She grabbed his face with both of her hands and he closed his eyes. She placed a soft kiss on his lips, testing carefully how bad things were, and felt him grab her hips with excessive strength, pulling her close against him before moving his arms around her. He deepened the kiss and they kept going until she felt wetness between their faces and he began to shake uncontrollably. Severus buried his head on the crook of her, letting her comfort him.

"I knew you had taken the ring off... but I wanted to make sure. I'm sorry you had to feel all that before you finally took it off. I wish you'd done it earlier. I'm sorry, love." He said before kissing her again.

"I chose to feel it. I chose to be with you on this. I love you."

...

"Juliana, after we get married... I can't keep it from him anymore." Tonks said with a pleading voice, making her sigh.

"So many people know already..." She said mostly to herself. "Look, Tonks. You know I love you with all my life, and I'm going to do this for you. And I will never say anything about your relationship with Remus but you know that I haven't forgiven him for what he did to Severus." Juliana said turning around and meeting her stare. Tonks looked down and rubbed her eyes.

"I know."

"And he must make a Sacred Oath, like you, but he must also promise that no matter how much he believes he can stop something, he won't do anything he wouldn't do if he didn't have any information." Juliana said sternly.

"Yes."

"Okay, then. From now on, it's your call."

Severus was not present when Remus witnessed his memory.

"You'll make a Sacred Oath following my conditions or I will erase your memory of this moment."

"How long have you known?" Remus asked Tonks in a quivering voice, ignoring Juliana.

"They told me not long after Dumbledore asked him to do it. I know you're doubting, but we talked with Dumbledore about all this long before he passed away. It's true. Severus has always been loyal to him." Tonks said calmly, her hair dull and brown.

"Merlin..." He said, running a hand through his hair.

"Remus." Juliana said grabbing his harm roughly, catching his attention. "I said, **_you'll make a Sacred Oath following my conditions or I will erase your memory of this moment. _**Am I clear?"

"Yes. Yes, I'll do it." He said, coming back to his senses.

When the Oath was done Juliana greeted them both, congratulated on their marriage again, and left without saying anything else.

"She hates me." Remus said, burying his face on his hands. "Of course she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you, Remus." Tonks said softly, sitting next to him and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"She does, and she has every right to do it. I never did anything to stop them from humiliating him. I should have, but I was desperate to belong with them. We did so many wrong things and we were never stopped. I'd hate me." He lifted his head and blinked twice. "_I hate me._"

"Remus, don't say that. She doesn't hate you, I promise." Tonks said turning his face to look at her. "She's just a bit... resentful about the whole thing." They were silent for a while. "Did you ever apologize to him?" She asked carefully.

"No..."

"Sirius did. Before he died... that night he apologized to him."

"What?" Remus asked, surprised.

"Juliana told me. I think you need to apologize to him, or at least try."

"I know." He said with a sigh. "Without counting Peter, I believe James was the only one that never regretted what we did to Severus. He never got a chance to be sorry."

"Believe me, Severus made sure Pettigrew felt sorry for every single thing he did." Remus let out a dry laugh. "Are you sure he never regretted it?"

"Very. If there was one thing he never regretted, was that. And now that makes me feel sick. Merlin, I feel that we're doing nothing compared to what he's done."

"That's not true, Remus."

...

"Fred, we have to go, they will begin to wonder where we are." George said impatiently with two brooms on his hands before going outside again.

"Yeah, coming." He answered before turning to Cassie.

"Please be careful. I know there are things they stopped telling me." She whispered quickly and bit her lip to avoid crying. He nodded and grabbed both sides of her face.

"I love you." He said before placing his lips on top of hers and kissing her softly.

"I love you too. See you soon."

"See you soon."

...

"Hello?" Cassandra asked before the phone rang a second time. "Are you okay? How's George?"

"Fine." Fred's tired voice said from the other line.

"My dad was here, he left a minute ago. He told us what happened and I swear it was not his intention, he was trying to curse one of the Death Eaters but Lupin - "

"It's fine."

"No. Fred! How can you say it's fine!? It's the opposite of fine! God, I am so sorry. God... they knew. My mom and my dad knew and they didn't tell me... but my dad said he _had to _tell them and that he was the one who gave that dirty little wizard the idea of the polyjuice potion and... I'm sorry. I swear he's sorry, too. I promise, Fred, he is. He didn't mean to do that. He left a potion that will close the wound but there is nothing he can do for the ear, he said that it's not possible to grow it back and he's sorry and I'm so sorry Fred please - " She was crying and her voice was an octave higher at this point, and Fred interrupted her again.

"Love, calm down. It's okay. We knew it was dangerous and something could happen. We're not angry, and you don't have to be sorry."

"But - " She said but he shushed her.

"I swear it's fine, Cassie."

"I just... where are you right now?" She asked as she searched for the small bottle her father had given her.

"In the Burrow."

"No, I know. I mean where are you specifically."

"Oh, I'm in my bedroom with George. He's asleep."

"Okay, I'm going to try something but I really need to focus and I don't know if it's going to work. I need you to sit and place your hands on your lap, as if holding something."

"Why?"

"Just do it, and wait. I have to hang up but I will call you in a minute, okay?"

"Okay."

She left the phone on the nightstand and took a deep breath. She held the potion in her hands and closed her eyes.

_Focus on his hands. His fingers, waiting for something._

_Now, focus on the bottle appearing on his hands._

She concentrated but when she opened her eyes, nothing had happened.

_Shit. Okay. Focus. Focus. This is important, this is George. He needs this. Focus._

She repeated the process one more time and when she opened her eyes, was relieved to see that the bottle was gone. She smiled but it quickly vanished when she realized how tired she had become. Her head was pounding and it was difficult to keep her eyes open.

She sighed and moved to lay on her bed, the call she was supposed to make already forgotten. The loud ringing of her phone took her out of her sleepy daze and she cursed loudly. Her head was hurting much more now that the peaceful silence had been disrupted, and she had to massage her temples to try and relieve some of the pain. She grabbed the phone and flipped it open.

"Did you get it?" She asked weakly.

"Yes! How on Earth did you do that?" Fred's surprised voice answered. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. It just drains you pretty bad, especially when it's long distances. I just need to get some sleep and I'll get better."

"I love you so much, Cass. Thank you." She smiled.

"I love you too, Freddie. But it wasn't me who made it, it was my father."

"Yeah... tell him we say thanks next time you see him. Should I wake him up and give it to him or should I wait?"

"Wake him up. The sooner, the better. Just... keep bandaging it and make sure no one but you two see it. The change will be very noticeable and they will ask questions."

"Yeah, okay. I'll wake him up right now. Can you stay in line?" He asked and she heard him say _Georgie, wake up_ in the background.

"Sure." She said sleepily.

"Don't fall asleep, I want to keep talking." He whined.

"No, no. I won't. You just... tell George the stuff." She said yawning mid sentence.

"Yeah, yeah. Wait. Don't fall asleep."

"Mhmm..." She said as she placed the phone next to her ear on the pillow and began to close her eyes.

"Cassie, it worked. It's amazing and - Cassie? Cassie?" He sighed and turned to George. "She's asleep."

"Give me the phone." George said, extending his hand. "_CASSIECASSIECASSIECASSIECASSANDRACASSANDRACASSANDRA_" He began to say loudly and smiled when he heard a gasp on the other line.

"What the fuck?" Cassie's sleepy voice could be heard and it sounded like she was away from the phone. "Oh, shit. Sorry, Fred. I fell asleep. How did it go." _Fred?_ George thought with a smile. _Okay, then._

"Oh, it worked just - " He began to say with a pleased smile.

"George!" She cried out, cutting him off. "How are you feeling? You didn't lose hearing, right? My father said that you wouldn't."

"How the hell did you know it was me?" He asked with a frown and Fred grinned widely at him.

"Because you're not Fred." She said as if it was obvious.

"Yeah, thanks for clarifying that, sometimes I get confused. But seriously, even we can notice that our voices sound pretty much the same."

"Yeah, but your tone is different. And besides, your voices do not _totally _sound the same, especially on the phone. After talking to Fred for hours, I kind of can tell when there is the slightest change."

"Whatever." He whined. "I don't wanna talk to you anymore." He said and handed the phone to Fred, who was laughing out loud.

"He's a baby." He said to Cassie, who laughed as well. "I really want to see you." He said once the laughter died down.

"I know, I want to see you too."

"Ughh, I'm still in the room! Have some respect!" George said, covering his head with his pillow. Fred snorted and silenced the space around him with a flick of his wand.

"Put a charm or something, or he'll start whining like a kid."

"I just did. Like I was saying, I really want to see you."

"Like _I _was saying, I want to see you too." She answered playfully and he smiled.

"I really wish you could come to the wedding." She sighed.

"I know, me too. But we can't do that, Fred."

"You know... before you told us about _it _I had planned to have you as my date. Merlin, I was excited about it."

"I'm sorry." She said with a sad tone and Fred felt guilty.

"No, don't be sorry, it's not like it's your fault or something. But... sometimes I really wish we could be like... you know... a normal couple. I know it's not possible and I wouldn't change what we have for anything because I love you, and what we have now already is more than I ever hoped for."

"You're making me cry, stop it." Cassie said with a watery laugh.

"Merlin...I'm really not excited about this wedding."

"Oh, come on, Freddie. Weddings are happy! Your brother is getting married to the love of his life. Celebrations at this point should be welcomed with open arms."

"Oh, no, I know. But I don't wanna see any girls from Fleur's side of the family."

"What, why?" She asked but something clicked. "Oh."

"Yeah. She has some pureblood Veela cousins. I don't wish to see that."

"Uh... but they're so beautiful? Even I'd be drooling for them." She said.

"Yeah, but they control you and take your willpower away. I don't like not being able to control what I do. If I'm with someone I want it to be because I chose to, not because someone magically made me want them. It's sort of like someone giving you a love potion, I hate it."

"Says the hypocrite who _sells_ love potions on his shop!" She said with a disbelieving snort.

"I know! I know." He said, laughing. "George and I are thinking about stopping. Giving someone a love potion is not a nice thing to do. We're planning on removing any kind of products that stop you from controlling your actions."

"Thank God! It's not like I told you to do it A MILLION TIMES. Oh no, wait. _I did_." She said sarcastically and he laughed. "Anyway, if it really worries you, there is an immunity potion for it. It's not very hard, I can brew it for you if you'd like."

"Are you joking?"

"No. Why would I be?" She asked with a frown.

"This is why I love you."

"You are as romantic as a potato, Fred."

"I love it when you talk dirty to me." He said with a suggestive tone.

"Fred!" She said with an embarrassed voice and he let out a laugh.

"What?" He asked innocently.

"I hate you."

"Ugh, me too. I can't stand you."

"You're so annoying."

"You are a pest."

"I wouldn't want to be near you even if you were the last man on Earth."

"I'd eat my guts before being with you."

"Brat."

"Stupid."

"Stop talking, your voice is like nails on a chalkboard."

"You're dumb."

"You're a moron."

"I love you more than anything."

"I love you more than that."

...

"Hello?"

"I need you."

"Fred, what are you doing?" Cassie said, looking at her watch. "You're in the middle of the wedding!"

"I'm not. I'm currently in the middle of the bathroom." He answered cheekily. She sighed. "I don't want to be here without you. It's sad and I miss you."

"Freddie, I miss you too, I really, really do. But this is how it has to be."

"I know, I just wish I could be with you right now." He answered sadly and she bit her lip.

"Okay, I wasn't supposed to tell you this yet but... whatever. I recently... have acquired an apartment in New York. I actually I'm here right now. Steve has been working here and he's been recruiting. There are a few people willing to fight, and we're gonna use it as headquarters. I wasn't going to tell you until it was finished but because it almost is..."

"I don't know how to feel about this, So I'm gonna go with excited. Steve knows then? About... uh..._ the thing_?"

"He doesn't _know _know... I mean... he knows things are not what they seem and he trusts me... Rosa as well. They preferred to not know when I told them it'd be better if less people knew. I believe they have their own conclusions by now."

"Oh, okay. So, when do I get to see the new flat?"

"If you're a good boy you can come tonight, and we can give it a proper christening."

What do you mean we can give it a proper christening? What is a christening?"

"It means that we are going to have sex here, Fred."

"Oh. OH! Okay. Yes, I like it. Definitely excited."

"But you have to behave and go have fun on your brother's wedding. Once you're ready give me a call and I'll tell you where to meet me."

"Oh yes, I love this wedding! I'm gonna go have some fun now! I love you!" She laughed.

"Love you too."

...

"Hey, how did it go?" Cassie asked with a smile when she answered the phone.

"Did you speak with your mother recently?" She frowned at his cold tone.

"Uh... we talked after I spoke to you. Just for a bit, though, because Steve came over and we went for a walk. I just got back, actually. Why? What happened?" She asked carefully.

"Cassie, the Ministry has been taken over by Death Eaters. Scrimgeour was killed, and they came to the wedding looking for Harry." Fred said as calm as he could.

"WHAT?! Oh my God, no. Are you okay? Is everyone okay? Did Harry manage to scape? Oh God, no. No. No." She said grabbing her forehead and beginning to pace on the living room.

"We're fine and Harry's safe. I'd rather speak to you in person."

"Yes! Yes, just... uh, do the same you did when I sent you the potion for George, I will send you a portkey. Can it be right now?"

"Yes. I'll be waiting."

"Okay, it will activate in five minutes, just to be sure. I'll be waiting for you."

"Okay, bye. See you soon."

"Yeah, bye."

A few moments later, Fred saw a small candy materialize on his hands and waited patiently for the five minutes to pass. When he was transported to her new flat, he found her screaming on the phone, looking very angry and agitated. She was speaking in portuguese, so he didn't know what she was saying. But he was sure the person on the other line was not having a good time.

"**HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME? JESUS CHRIST MOM! I DON'T GIVE A SHIT IF YOU DIDN'T WANT ME TO WORRY, DO YOU THINK A FUCKING WALK IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN TELLING ME THAT FUCKING DEATH EATERS ATTACKED MY FUCKING BOYFRIEND'S HOUSE, JESUS! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?**" She abruptly stopped when she saw him standing there, and let out a deep breath. "He's here, bye." She said quickly and threw the phone on the couch before running into his waiting arms. "Oh my God, oh my God." She repeated with her face buried on his shoulder, hugging him tightly. "I love you." She said before kissing him desperately.

Fred hadn't been able to say a thing yet but responded to the kiss eagerly, tangling his fingers on her hair and enjoying the feeling of having her so close to him again. When they split apart for air they hugged each other, closing their eyes.

Cassie led him to the couch and he pulled her on his lap. She rested her forehead on his and looked into his eyes, as if trying to read his mind.

"You have the most beautiful eyes in the world." She whispered before moving her head to rest on his shoulder, her hand finding his, intertwining their fingers together. Fred smiled softly and blushed, pecking her lips.

"Thank you, love."

"What happened?" She asked softly.

"Well..." Fred said and took a deep breath. "Everyone was having a good time, it was great... but then Kingsley's Patronus appeared and it said: _The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming._ And after that... hell broke loose. Everyone started to apparate and leave and Harry managed to scape with Ron and Hermione."

"How did they know Harry was going to be there?" She asked with a frown.

"They didn't. They were attacking all the houses related to the Order." She pulled away with wide and panicked eyes.

"What?"

"No one is dead." He answered and pulled her onto him again, rubbing her back.

"Fucking hell." She breathed out. "And after they arrived?"

"Well... they searched the house and questioned us for hours. They didn't get any information. And the ghoul worked."

"How did they question you?"

"It doesn't matter, what matters is that they didn't get any information." He answered and moved to place a kiss on her temple but she pulled away and stood up.

"How did they question you, Fred?" She insisted with a stern voice.

"I said it doesn't matter, Cassie." He said with a sigh, looking down.

Cassie felt her eyes filling with tears and bit back a sob. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself, and kneeled in front of him, taking his hands on hers. Fred refused to look at her, instead focusing on a loose string on his pants.

"Look at me." She said softly, but he didn't. "Fred, love. Look at me." He frowned and swallowed, looking around the room before finally meeting her stare. The sad look on her eyes mirrored his, but he was doing a better job holding back the tears. "What did they do to you?"

"It doesn't matter what they did to _me_..." He said and anger began to show on his voice. "It was seeing what they did to my family. Witnessing everything. Hearing them and not being able to do _anything_. I just felt so helpless." He removed his hands from her grasp and used them to hold his head.

"Freddie..." Cassie whispered, removing his hands and grabbing his face with hers. She bit her lip, knowing that no matter what she said, there wasn't really anything that could make everything better. Things were not okay, and they weren't going to be anytime soon. What they did to him and his family was not okay either, and it wasn't something to not worry about. It was most likely to happen again, and again, and not only to them, but to everyone who didn't agree with Voldemort or fulfill his standards. So she didn't say anything, she just pulled his face down to hers and kissed him.

She knew how to perfectly convey feelings on her actions, and that's exactly what she did. She wanted him to know that even if things were going to get worse from now on, he could count on her. Fred reciprocated her feelings entirely, and was doing his best to show it her with his response. Neither knew for how long they kept kissing, but once they finally pulled away, Cassie was sitting on Fred's lap once again.

"Are you staying tonight?" She asked against his lips.

"Yes. George's covering for me. And... you owe me a christening." He said with a smirk. She laughed, really laughed, and pecked him on the lips.

"Fair enough."

...

Cassandra's birthday barely felt like a birthday. There were a few presents and Severus managed to be with her for a few hours but no one could escape the feeling that there was no reason to celebrate when things were the way they were.

...

The sound of the front door opening and heavy footsteps behind her alerted Juliana of Severus's presence, but she remained still on her spot looking out the window. Her stare wasn't focused, and her mind was miles away. A pair of warm hands made their way under her blouse, caressing the skin of her stomach and hips, making her close her eyes and sigh. She leaned back into his broad chest and let herself be enveloped by his arms, while his lips where grazing her neck. One of her hands went up to tangle on his hair, pulling softly. She turned her head to the side to find his mouth, kissing him slowly, like they had all the time in the world.

"Did you do it?" She asked in a whisper, barely pulling away from him. He kissed her again before answering.

"Yes. And he reconciled with Weasley on the way."

"Good." She said before turning around and starting to unbutton his shirt.

...

Fred and George's birthday didn't feel much more of a birthday than Cassie's. Their family tried to have a small gathering and they even had a cake and some presents, but Fred only wanted to have Cassie with him and George could not be happy if Fred wasn't.

...

Cassie was anxiously looking at the clock while a group of about twenty people did their best to fit on her apartment. Some where sitting and some where standing, talking animatedly with each other. This wasn't their first meeting, far from it, actually, but it was the first meeting Fred and George were going to attend to.

This day's Potterwatch transmission, the first one where Fred had made an appearance as _Rapier_, had just ended, which meant that they were going to arrive anytime now.

She looked at the clock one more time when the doorbell rang. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and started to walk to the door. However, Steve stopped her.

"You don't have to be so nervous, they're just Fred and George." He said with a smile.

"I know. But I don't know, I can't help it? I don't even know _why _I'm nervous, I just am." Steve playfully rolled his eyes and pushed her forward before going back to the others.

Cassie opened the door and was greeted by the twin's smiling faces. She hugged George first and then proceeded to hug Fred and give him a small peck on the lips. She led them to where everyone was already waiting for them.

"Long time no see!" They heard a female voice with a thick accent say before Rosa's smiling face appeared from the back of the crowd.

"Rosa!" They said at the same time and she gave both a kiss on the cheek before moving to stand next to Cassie.

"Okay everyone. For those of you who don't know or do not remember me fifteen minutes ago saying it, these are Fred," she pointed to the twin on the right, "and George. And try to remember that, because they sure love confusing people. Okay, like I told you, they are from Great Britain, and well... I'm just gonna let them speak." She took a few steps back, making them the center of attention.

"You speak, Fred." Fred said to George with a smirk he mirrored.

"As you say, George."

"Fred!" Cassie scolded him.

"Yes?" George asked looking at her with a fake innocent look.

"Wait, what? Weren't you George?" A girl asked with a frown.

"No, I'm George." Fred said with conviction.

"No, I'm George." George said.

"No, I'm George." Fred said looking at his twin. "And you're Fred."

"Oh, you're right." George said, faking understanding. "I'm Fred."

"No, I'm Fred."

"We're Fred!" They both said smiling at the same time. "We're George!"

"Fred!" Cassie yelled.

"Yes?" They both answered with a smile.

"I'm so confused right now." A boy on the back said.

"Jesus Christ. It doesn't matter who's who, just talk." Cassie said pulling her hair.

"Merlin Cass, don't get your knickers in a twist. I'm Gred, he's Forge." George said pointing at himself first and Fred afterwards. The people laughed and Cassie narrowed his eyes at him. "Okay. First things first." He put his hand inside his pocket and pulled a small bag. "Inside the bag are coins that look exactly like your regular 50 cents coins, but are not. See." He said pulling one and showing it to them. "Now, all of these coins are fake and magical, and they have a proteus charm on them. I assume you're familiar with it." They all nodded. "Okay. I'm just gonna pass this bag and you all take one." He gave it to Cassie, who gave it to Rosa, who gave it to Steve, who gave it to a boy, and they kept passing it on. "All have one? Okay. I have what would be the master coin." He showed them a coin identical to theirs. "What this means is that whatever change I do to this coin will be reflected on yours, like this." He pointed his wand to the coin and they a collective gasp was heard. "As you can see, you will feel whenever it changes, but for it to work, you'll need to have it with you at all times." His face became uncommonly serious. "The time for us to fight is coming closer, and if you are willing to help us, we need you to be vigilant and ready for anything. I know Cassandra has already told you this but this is not a game. If you choose to fight, your life will be at risk. This is dangerous, don't think otherwise for a second."

"Which leads me to ask you once again, if someone wants to leave now, you are free to." No one moved and she nodded once. "Okay. Here's how the coin business is going to work. George, yes, he's George, will alert us when they need us and you will come _here. _This is our meeting point. I will be in charge of the transportation to wherever we need to go. And listen, we will not wait more than ten minutes after George communicates with us. Time is priceless. Because of this I recommend you were your coin around your necks at all times. Do you have any questions?" No one talked. "Okay, that would be it for today, then. Check your e-mails for the date of the next meeting." Everyone nodded and they began to get up.

"You sure using _e-mail_ is safe?" Fred asked Cassie with a frown.

"Definitely. I'm pretty sure _you-know-who _does not check his account regularly." She said sarcastically. "And there is not a chance he has even a follower who's in touch with muggle technology. So, that's something on our favour." She said walking to the door to greet all the people leaving with him following behind.

"See you next time. Thanks for coming. Be safe. Take care. Goodbye." She repeated until the only people in the room were the twins, Steve, Rosa and her. She locked the door and leaned back into it, closing her eyes and sighing. She opened her arms for Fred without opening her eyes, and he walked forward, encircling her waist and kissing her neck.

"I missed you." Cassie whispered.

"I missed you too." He answered in the same tone before his mouth found hers.

"What's taking them so long?" They heard just ask. "Oh, they're probably sucking each other's faces off. Forget I asked." They smiled at that but didn't stop. What made them pull away, however, was Cassie's phone ringing.

"Oh, that has to be..." She began to say as she flipped the phone open and moved it to her ear. "Amy! How are you?" She asked as Fred began to kiss her neck again, trying in vain to listen to the conversation. "How did your test go? ... Oh, I'm glad. Fred, stop it!" She scolded him when he licked and nibbled to hard. He just smiled. "Yes, he is. ... Oh my God, Amy, shut up!" She laughed and stopped to listen again. "No, they left a little while ago. ... Stop it, don't worry. I'm glad it went okay, you studied like crazy. ... No, not everyone. Fred, George, Steve and Rosa are still here. And you need to come pick up your coin. ... Uh-huh, where are you now? ... Oh, okay, then. ... Yeah, yeah, I'll be waiting. ... Okay, bye, love you!" She closed the phone and pushed Fred away. "You are unbelievable!" She said with a laugh, making him smile. "Come on. Amy's coming." She said and walked to the living room again.

"Amy? Who's Amy?" He asked with a frown.

"Don't be like that! Amy Jackson! You know who she is!" She said with an offended tone.

"I know, I was joking. I know I only saw her once but it's not like I can forget her. She's the daughter of a _pranking god_." He said with a smirk poking her side. She stuck her tongue at him.

"Amy's coming? How did her exam go?" Steve asked curiously.

"Great, as far as she knows."

"Who's coming?" George asked coming out of the bathroom.

"Amy." The four answered at the same time and he rose his eyebrows.

"Okay..." He said and racked his brain for a second trying to remember what Amy they could be talking about until he remembered. "Why is she coming now?"

"Because she had an important exam and she didn't make it sooner." Cassie said and in that moment the doorbell rang.

"I get it!" Steve said getting up from his chair. "I haven't seen her in months." He disappeared behind the door that lead to the small hallway going to the door.

They heard and excited female squeal and a sound of what they assumed where two bodies crashing together in a hug, followed by muffled sounds of Amy saying "_Ohhh,_ _I missed you so much!"_

"Amy!" Cassie said running to her open arms with a smile. They hugged for a few seconds before releasing each other. Rosa gave her a kiss on the cheek and a short hug and she waved awkwardly at Fred and George, who waved back.

"You're having dinner here, right?" Cassie asked with a look that gave her no opportunity to refuse.

"Sure." She answered with a smile.

"Okay! Are you hungry?" She asked the rest who nodded. "Well, I sure as hell am not cooking for six people so... how about pizza?"

"From that place two blocks down!" Steve said with a smile.

"Okay... who's going to buy it?" She asked with a hopeful smile.

"Not me." They all said and her smile vanished.

"You suck. Fred, do you wanna come?"

"Always." He whispered into her ear and winked at her. She looked at him with an incredulous look and lifted her hands in surrender.

"You're hopeless. Come on, let's go. And I'm not even asking what do you want, I'm just buying whatever the hell I want." She screamed before closing the door behind them. They barely heard a chorus of groans before walking away. They stepped into the elevator and Fred pulled her into his arms to give her a kiss.

"I love you." He said kissing her hair and she sighed.

"I love you too." She said and smiled. "Rapier." He pulled back and looked at her with his eyebrows raised and a grin.

"You were listening?" He asked, surprised.

"Of course I was!" Cassie said with a laugh and the elevator doors opened, showing an old lady waiting outside. "Hello, Mrs. Henderson." She said with a smile and took a hold of Fred's hand, pulling him outside.

"Hello, dear." She answered nicely before the elevator doors closed. She smiled and moved to walk but was stopped by Fred, who wasn't moving. She turned around and found him looking at their intertwined hands, almost as if he was surprised.

"Fred?" She asked and he lifted his head up, looking a little lost. He frowned and looked around and then back to her. She did the same, trying to see if there was something particular that had catched his attention. There were just a few people walking around, nothing out of the ordinary. "What's wr - " She began to ask but when she turned her face completely to him again, he grabbed her waist and pulled her to him, kissing her by surprise. She opened her eyes wide but responded quickly, kissing him back. She pulled away a few seconds later, blushing furiously. A few of the people that were around had stopped what they were doing to look at them, and she was embarrassed. "Okay, moving on..." She said and grabbed his hand again, walking fast to the entrance of the building. Once they were outside and away from the prying eyes she finally spoke again.

"What got into you in there?"

"You were holding my hand." He said and smiled goofily, letting go of her hand to hold her waist. She hugged him as well, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah, so? You don't normally kiss me whenever I hold your hand."

"No, you don't get it. It's_ this_." He said and stopped walking, turning her to look at him. She looked at him with a confused look. "Me and you. Here, walking together, holding hands, and everyone can see us." Realization showed on her face and love shone on her eyes. She grabbed his face and pulled him down to hers, kissing him again.

"I love you." She said and he grinned widely.

"I love you too."

They decided to walk around a little more before going to buy the food. Fred was absolutely delighted that everyone could see that they were a couple, and enjoyed every second of it. Once they were coming back with four boxes of pizza, they were stopped by Rosa and Steve walking to them.

"What are you doing here?" Fred asked with a frown. Steve and Rosa looked at each other with a knowing look before she spoke.

"Well, we think George and Amy like each other."

"What? We were gone for like half an hour! How can you know that?" Cassie asked, surprised.

"Well, I don't think they know yet..." Rosa said but was cut off by a snort coming from Cassie.

"I assure you, Amy knows she likes him." She said with a mocking smile but it disappeared quickly and a look of horror showed on her face. "Oh my God! Oh my God, what the hell did I just do!? Fred don't you dare tell George that. You were not supposed to know that!" She warned him.

"Amy likes George?!" He asked with a smile.

"Don't say it! Oh my God... she's going to kill me..." Steve laughed at her panicked look and took the boxes of pizza from her hands, Rosa taking Fred's and leaving them alone to talk outside.

"Since when?" He asked smugly, crossing his arms.

"Don't look at me like that, Fred! You weren't supposed to know, oh my God. Please, promise you won't tell him." She said miserably and he felt bad.

"I promise. Calm down, love." He said and pulled her into his arms.

"I'm such a bad friend!" She said miserably and buried her face on his shoulder. "I promised I wouldn't tell."

"I won't tell him, Cassie. Don't worry. You're not a bad friend." He said kissing her head. "Are you going to answer?"

"What?"

"Since when?"

"Uh... some time ago?" She said pulling away and starting to walk to the entrance of the building. "I mean... She admired you both but remember that time in Salem when we went to her dad's shop and you talked to her and all that? Well, there was something about George for her and she knew she liked you and liked _liked _him. But I don't know... she's like getting over it now, as far as I am concerned, because she's met so many nice guys on college. She went on a date with this one guy named Jason last saturday and she said to me she's really into him." The doors of the elevator closed. "And what if George doesn't like _like _her and she gets those feelings back and what if she ruins this chance she has with Jason and then she's unhappy?" She buried her face on her hands.

"Uh... well. I can say that he's never talked about her like he liked her. We never talked about her, period. I'm not entirely sure he remembered her a week after we were with her. Well... she didn't really talk about her that time we were together so... maybe that's why George didn't pay attention to her. But if they talk now... who knows?" The elevator doors opened and they walked out.

"Yeah... just... don't tell him anything, okay?" She said one more time.

"I won't." He promised and kissed her cheek before she opened the door and they walked inside. Everyone was already eating.

"I'd ask what took you so long but I _honestly _don't want to know." Amy said taking another bite of pizza.

"Ha-ha. Funny." Cassie said sarcastically before sitting next to Fred on the couch and taking a slice for herself. They talked about trivial matters and both Cassie and Fred tried to see if there was any kind of special connection between Amy and George, but they didn't notice any out of the ordinary. They talked to each other the same way they talked to anyone else, and they wondered what had made Steve and Rosa say that.

George was in the middle of a story when Amy's phone rang. She blushed and looked at him apologetically before standing up and answering, going to the kitchen to speak.

"Jason, hey! ... No, I'm actually at a friend's house right now. ... Yes! It's actually her, I can't believe you remembered." She said with a cheery laugh. "No... she lives really close, actually. And I was about to leave so I don't think that would be a problem." Cassie opened her mouth in surprise at that and smiled. "Sure, yeah. I'll call you when I get there. See you soon." She appeared once again and blushed at Cassie's raised eyebrows.

"_She lives really close?_" She asked incredulously. "Yeah, _she_ sure does!_ A thousand-miles-away_, close! _In-another_-_state _close!"

"He doesn't have to know that. I will get there in a minute anyway." She said, the blush still on her face.

"Yeah, you sure will. Have fun on your hot date." Amy narrowed her eyes at her.

"I will." She whispered to her. "Sorry guys, I have to go. Sorry I don't get to hear the end of your story, George. It sounded really cool." She apologized and he shrugged his shoulders with a small smile.

"Next time."

"Oh! Don't forget the coin!" Cassie said suddenly and looked around. "But I don't know where it is."

"_Accio bag of coins._" George said pulling his wand out and a small bag shot out from under the couch into his hand. "How did that get there?" He asked mostly to himself before pulling one out and handing it to Amy. She took it and thanked him. "Do you know how it works?"

"Yeah, Cassie explained. Really cool, to be honest." She took her wand out and with quick flick produced a chain and hung it on her neck. "Okay, now I really have to go."

"Yeah, I'll walk you to the door." Cassie said and Amy waved at everyone before following her. "Call me and tell me how it went." She said before hugging her goodbye.

"Yeah, I will." She answered with a grin. "Bye!"

Cassie was beginning to close the door but Steve appeared suddenly.

"Nope! Don't close it."

"What? You're leaving too?" She said with a pout.

"Yep, it's getting late." He said and walked outside.

"AHH, you suck." She whined before hugging him. "When are you coming back?"

"Dunno. I'll call you." He said with a smirk, making her roll her eyes.

When she was going to close the door again, Rosa and George appeared.

"**Wait, don't close it.**" Rosa said quickly.

"Why is everyone leaving at the same time!?" She complained.

"Stop whining, I'm the reason you get to do uninterrupted naughty stuff with your boyfriend almost every night. And with that terrible mental image I say goodnight." He hugged her and kissed her forehead before leaving.

"**I'm actually running late but I didn't want to go!**" Rosa said, making her smile.

"**It's okay, go.**" She said and gave her a kiss and a hug before she disappeared. "Are you sure you don't want to go as well?" She yelled to Fred before locking the door. He didn't answer but she didn't pay any mind. When she went to the room again, he wasn't there. "Fred? Where are you?" She asked but again didn't get any answer except the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. "Okay then." She said with a smirk before starting to take her clothes off.

...

"He's so beautiful." Cassie whispered, mesmerized. She carefully was holding a small baby on her arms, and by the look on her face, the rest of the world was lost to her. Tonks smiled tiredly at her and looked at the baby. "You are the most beautiful baby ever, did you know that, Teddy? I just met you and I already love you." The baby opened his eyes slowly and looked directly at hers. She moved her finger to touch his face softly and he immediately grabbed it, holding it tightly. "Oh my God, he grabbed my finger!" She whisper-screamed to Tonks, who smiled fondly. "Ahhhh, he's so cute!" Teddy closed his eyes again and fell asleep, still holding Cassie's finger.

Remus entered the room and smiled at the scene in front of him. Cassie didn't pay any mind to him, still completely enamored with Teddy.

"Cassie?" Tonks asked softly. She looked up at them for a second before looking down at the baby again.

"Yeah?"

"We wanted you to ask you something." This caught her attention and she looked at them.

"Yes?"

"Would you like to be Teddy's godmother?" Remus asked with a small smile.

"What?" She asked, her eyes wide. "Are you serious?"

"Of course, Cass." Tonks asked, trying hard to not laugh at her expression.

"Oh my God! You're serious! Of course! Yes! Oh my God yes yes yes yes!" She answered excitedly, waking Teddy up in the process. He started crying. "Oh no! I made him cry!" She said sadly, walking to Tonks and placing him on her arms. She calmed him down and Cassie took him from her again, making her and Remus laugh. "I'm going to be the coolest godmother ever, Teddy. I promise."

...

"It's going to happen soon. This week, most likely." George said grimly as a now cold full cup of tea sat in front of him. "How is your mum going to know when it happens?" He said looking at Cassie, who was sitting on a chair looking outside the window.

"My father. Because of the bond. They can communicate through it."

"They can talk through a magical bond?" Fred asked sceptically.

"I never said talk, I said _communicate._" She answered without looking at him.

"Well, whatever. Ron, Harry and Hermione were going to - " George began to say but stopped abruptly and looked at Fred with wide eyes, finding him mirroring his expression. They took the galleons out and swallowed.

"It's happening." They said at the same time and Cassie paled.

"Call the others. I need to go to Brazil."

"How much does it take you to make a portkey?" Fred said but she shook her head and gave him a quick kiss.

"I don't need one anymore." She answered before disappearing in front of his eyes. Fred just looked at the place she had ben occupying seconds ago, not fully believing what he had just seen.

"Guess she's been practicing without your knowledge." George said, removing him from his daze. He looked at him and saw him pocketing the coin and his wand, and a few seconds later people began to appear. The first one was some guy they didn't know, followed by many other people they didn't know. Steve and Amy appeared a minute later, and Cassie was back with Rosa in tow another minute after that.

They waited the ten stated ten minutes and were not disappointed when all the people that were present on the meeting where the twins assisted were all there now, ready to go.

"Okay everyone, you all know how to use a portkey and these will activate in a minute so go with your group and get ready." Fred, George, Steve, Amy and Rosa walked to where she was and when the minute passed, the portkey took them directly to the Hog's Head.

"What the bloody hell? How many of you are there?" A loud deep male voice roared. Cassie looked around only to find a man that reminded him very much of Albus.

_Aberforth._

"Who are they?" A dark skinned guy asked Fred and George.

"People we've met and were willing to fight." The guy raised one eyebrow but said nothing to that.

"Fred, George. Come here for a second." Cassie said and moved to a lone corner of the pub. They followed her.

"Yeah?" They asked and she put her hand inside her pocket, puling out two silver bracelets.

"Put these on, please. They have the same spell my parents' rings have. If you are in mortal danger... I want to know, and I want to try to help." She lifted her sleeves and showed them that she was wearing five of them, all identical to theirs.

"I'm guessing they also have one." George said putting it on and looking back to where Steve, Amy and Rosa were. "How do you know who's in danger?"

"_I just do_. And I'll know where to go. That's how the spell works."

"It works both ways, right?" Fred asked pulling his sleeve down again. She nodded and he let out a relieved breath.

"I advice you go alone with the others first. We'll wait for the Amazons and I need you to do something."

"What is it?" Fred asked.

"I need you to confund Ron and Hermione. They can't react when they see me." They both nodded.

"Done." They answered at the same time.

"Okay, go. You've been here too long as it is. We'll be there as soon as the Amazons arrive." They nodded and Fred grabbed her face and placed a soft and quick kiss on her lips.

"Love you." He said before walking away and entering the portrait with the others behind him.

"Love you too." She whispered to no one and returned to the others. A while later a group of several vicious looking women appeared on the room, startling everyone.

"Jesus Christ." Steve said next to Cassie, taking a few steps back. Aberforth did not dare to speak, he just merely looked at the women with a wide eyed stare.

"**Did you have any trouble finding this place?**" Cassie asked walking to one of them who looked more imposing and taller than the others. The other people in the room did not even dare to breathe, and there wasn't another sound that weren't her footsteps. The woman turned to her and smiled warmly, hugging her as if greeting an old friend. This action, as simple as it was, was enough to show a human side to the woman that did not make her seem so terrifying.

"**Did you ever think we would?**" She asked with a sneer and Cassie smiled. "**Sorry it took us so long, but as you saw, we were in the middle of_ something_.**"

"**I know, and I didn't doubt you for a second.**" She turned to Aberforth. "We will be going now, sir." She said politely and he just moved away to let them pass, not saying a word. Steve was leading the group, even if he had no idea where he was going, and Cassie being followed by the Amazons.

After a long and tiring walk, they finally arrived to the famous Room of Requirement.

"And Fred and George found all these people and brought them here to fight, but as far as I know there are still a few more left and - " Lee was saying but stopped abruptly when the women came out of the tunnel. "Merlin." He said and swallowed, looking as surprised as most of the others.

"**Just ignore them.**" Cassie said nonchalantly.

"**We always do.**" Anaea, the woman who had hugged Cassie before and who was also the leader of the group, answered with a roll of her eyes.

"Okay everyone." Fred began to say. "These are our lady friends the Amazons and they are quite deadly. And by quite, I mean_ absolutely_. They kindly accepted to fight with us because they have an insatiable thirst for Death Eater's blood..."

"Fred!" Cassie said, angry.

"Sorry." He said with a small smile. "Well, all these people have decided to help us with no further encouragement except for the fact that we might defeat people doing things that are _wrong. _And that's great, I think." All the people in the room nodded appreciatively except for one, and Cassandra paled when she made eye contact with her. Ginny looked at her with narrowed eyes and looked like was about to spit fire. She did not say a thing, however. She just walked slowly to where Cassie was, as if assessing her like a prey. Cassie was glued to her spot, not being able to find the strength to move away.

"Well, hello, Cassandra." She said in a low and dangerous tone. "Funny seeing you here." Cassie took a step back and was about to speak when Fred and George appeared on her side.

"Ginny, don't." They said and she looked at them with surprise clear on her eyes.

"Excuse me?"

"Please, look at me." Fred said grabbing her from the shoulders and meeting her strong stare. "I swear I can't tell you why, but I need you to trust me. Cassie is with us, I promise."

"What?" She asked angrily.

"I swear, please, please, believe me. You know I wouldn't lie to you, Ginny. She's with us, she's always been."

"You never broke up with her, did you?" She asked, realization dawning on her. Fred couldn't answer that but hoped his silence was answer enough for her. It was. "Why didn't you tell me!" She whispered, removing his hands from her shoulders roughly.

"Ginny. _This is a life or death situation_. _I could not tell you_. I mean it."

"Bloody hell. Fine." She said before directing one last cold look to Cassie and George and walked away.

Cassie sighed and leaned back into the wall.

"When I said I needed you to confund Ron and Hermione I wasn't counting on the fact that Ginny was going to be here, but I think that it should've been implied that I needed you to confund _everyone _who knew about me." She said rubbing her eyes.

"We're sorry." They said together and she shook her head.

"No, it was my fault. I should've told you and I didn't. Fucking hell, she hates me so much." She said and covered her eyes with her palms, trying to stop the tears.

"Hey, she doesn't hate you." Fred said, pulling her into his arms. She looked to him with one eyebrow raised. "Okay, she thinks she hates you, but once she knows the truth she'll come around. I promise."

Any answer she was going to give him was cut off by the sound of more people arriving. Cassie didn't know a few of them, but she recognized Remus and Arthur and Molly.

"Oh no, your parents are here!" She said to Fred and George, hiding behind the latter. Remus saw her and walked quickly to where she was.

"Don't worry, I already confunded them. They won't know who you are." Cassie sighed, relieved, and hugged him briefly.

"Thank you. How are Tonks and Teddy?"

"Great, great. Tonks sends her love." Cassie smiled at him but didn't answer, and he walked to where the others were. Cassie encouraged Fred and George to do the same to avoid Molly coming there and wanting to know who she was.

Before anyone could say anything else, Harry Potter appeared on the room, looking completely dumbfounded.

"Harry, what's happening?" Remus asked.

"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school - Snape's run for it. What are you doing here? How did you know? Who are all those people?" He asked, looking around the room with confusion written on his face.

"We sent messages to the rest of Dumbledore's Army," Fred explained. "You couldn't expect everyone to miss the fun, Harry, and the D.A. let the Order of the Phoenix know, and it all kind of snowballed. And well, we met some people these past few months and they were willing to fight."

From then it was all mess. There was a fight about Ginny's underage condition, and Percy appeared and apologized to his family for his mistakes.

Once they were out of the room, the Amazons were the first to split up from the group. They worked better on their own, and they needed to familiarize with the castle.

Fred desperately wanted to grab a hold of Cassie's hand, but restrained himself and instead walked as close to her as possible without actually touching her. They all stopped suddenly when a voice echoed through the halls.

_"I know you are preparing to ﬁght. Your efforts are futile. You cannot ﬁght me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood. Give me Harry Potter, and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you should be rewarded. You have until midnight."_

Cassie felt the hairs on her neck standing up and instinctively grabbed Fred's hand, pulling him close to her, as if making sure the voice was not going to make him disappear. He kissed her head softly and hugged her close.

"I love you." He whispered before releasing her, but she pulled him back to her and kissed him on the lips.

"I love you too." He smiled and they began walking to the Great Hall again, crossing paths with a big group of Slytherins that were leaving the castle. Fred and George, along all the other Weasleys, moved to sit on the Gryffindor table, but Cassie chose to sit on the Hufflepuff table because it reminded her of her mother, subsequently making all the other people follow her and sit with them. She introduced herself and the others to the Hufflepuffs, explaining that they were there because they wanted to fight. They were all welcomed warmly.

"They are so nice! How are they so nice!" Steve, who was sitting right next to her, whispered into her ear. She smiled softly.

"Oh, that's just how they are."

She barely paid attention to what Kingsley was saying until Fred spoke up.

"Sounds like a job for us." He said and Cassie turned around to see George nodding in agreement, just like Kingsley.

Just as they began to separate the groups, Harry left the room. Cassie walked to where Fred was and pulled him away from the group.

"We're going to split up now. I want to make sure I say goodbye, just in case."

"Don't say that." He said seriously and she sighed.

"Fred. I mean it. Please... just in case, yes?" He bit his lip and didn't look very willing but finally accepted.

"Okay... um... I just wanted to thank you for being in my life and making me laugh..." Her voice broke and he hugged her, still looking into her eyes. "I just... I don't want to make this long because we don't have time but... I want you to know that all my life I wished to one day be able to feel for someone what my mom feels for my father. And I know you've given me the chance to experience that kind of love. So, yes, thank your for letting me love you." He swallowed and bit his lip, a million things he wanted to say running through his mind but no words coming out of his mouth. So he just decided to do what he always did when he was at loss of words, kiss her like there was no tomorrow because... maybe there wasn't.

"You are..." He said between kisses. "the love of my life." He kissed her again. "And I'm sure I want to spend..." He kept kissing her. "The rest of my life with you." He pulled away but rested his forehead on hers. "Because I don't want to live a life without you in it."

"Neither do I. I love you, Fred."

"I love you, Cassie."

They were forced pull away when they were called, and she managed to hug George and tell him to be safe before leaving the Great Hall with the others.

...

Cassie had lost count of how many Death Eaters and Voldemort followers she had killed so far. She had a shallow gash on her shoulder, product of a curse that was sent by someone she couldn't identify when she had her back turned, and another one on her left leg. That one was deep, but she had managed to numb the pain so she could keep walking and stopped the blood from oozing out and the wound from opening with the movement.

She didn't know where Rosa, Steve or Amy where anymore. She had crossed paths with her mother a while back, who was completely unharmed. Thankfully, she had enough time to give her a hug and tell her she loved her before continuing her way.

It was just after she had sent a filthy looking men crashing into a wall when she felt it.

_Death. Coming closer._

She couldn't explain how she knew it was death itself, but she was sure of it, just like she was sure it had to do with Fred.

Without knowing what she was doing she disappeared from the spot and appeared on a corridor, immediately seeing Fred and his brother Percy dueling masked men.

From that moment, everything felt like it was happening in slow motion.

Fred and Percy had defeated their opponents, and Fred was smiling widely.

"You're joking, Perce!" She heard him say at the same time her eye caught sight of another hooded men a few feet away, focusing on the wall above them. Whatever he was going to do, it was going to kill Fred, and she knew it. "You actually are joking, Perce... I don't think I've heard you joke since you were - " She heard him speak again but this time he was cut off by a big explosion and that feeling of _death_ in her heart increased until she was sure she'd do anything to make it stop. But there was only one thing to do, and she had to do it quickly. She moved her hand and saw how Fred was thrown out of harm's way like a rag doll and she knew she had been the one that had caused it. He fell to the floor, unconscious, but all she could think was that he had not been affected by the explosion. She tried to walk but realized that she wasn't standing, she was actually lying on the floor and there was a loud beeping noise on her ears that did not let her hear anything else, and there was something wet coming out of her nose that reached her mouth and tasted rusty and salty and she tried to remember what it was but suddenly the world was blurred, and all she knew was that she couldn't get up from her place on the floor.

The beeping sound suddenly disappeared and was replaced by loud screaming she didn't understand, except for one word.

"Fred!" And that word alone was enough to bring her back to her senses and make her stand up, somehow. She walked to the source of the noise trying to hold onto the walls, slowly beginning to come back to herself.

"No, Fred, no!" She heard someone shout and _that was it_. She was running until she saw _him_.

He was laying there.

Motionless.

_No._

Unconscious.

_No._

A smile still on his lips.

_No._

Dead.

_NO!_

There was a loud scream and she realized it was coming from her own mouth and at some point she had stopped standing there and had run to where he was and now was kneeling in front of him.

"Who are you?" Someone asked but it felt like they were miles away from her and _him._

"No, Fred, no." She said desperately and searched for a pulse, something that told her he was still there, that not everything was lost forever.

She didn't find it on the first try so she focused harder.

She was a witch, she could know things normal people couldn't.

Maybe he wasn't completely gone.

Maybe there was something in him.

Something that could bring him back.

_And there it was._

She opened her eyes abruptly and pushed the other person crying next to her, and climbed onto him. She pulled her hands on his chest and closed her eyes.

"Come back to me. Come back to me." She whispered and willed her own vital energy to leave her and go to him, because he needed it much more than her now. It was dangerous, yes, it was, but who cared? She wanted him alive, and she was willing to do anything to make that happen. She opened her eyes again and saw a white bright light between her hands and his chest and smiled.

_It's working._

But he hadn't woken up yet, and she was feeling weaker by the second. If he was almost _too gone _the only way to bring him back was to leave herself.

_I don't care._

"Someone stop her!" She heard an unknown voice say but she wasn't there with them right now. She was alone with Fred and she was going to save him.

"She's going to kill herself! Stop her!" She heard the voice say again but this time it was more distant, and everything around her was white, and it was only her and Fred now, and she knew she loved him and there was no turning back anymore.

And then, just as she felt the last of her rational thoughts start to fade away, a steady heartbeat began again under her palms.

...

In different parts of the castle, four other people felt deep in their hearts that something terrible had happened to someone, but they didn't know what it was. And they realized that, in the end, those bracelets didn't really work both ways.

Because they didn't know where to go, and just as the feeling appeared, it left.

Confused, they kept doing what they were doing before.

George, making big green bulges appear in the face of a woman who had just tried to murder him.

Amy, killing an enormous spider that was about to eat a younger girl.

Rosa, knocking unconscious three Death Eaters at the same time.

And Steve, moving to stand in front of Tonks just as a bright green light shot out of Bellatrix's wand, hitting him square in the chest instead.

...

Juliana knew from the moment she arrived to Hogwarts that she was going to fight unless Cassie or Severus needed her.

However, there was something that terrified her, and was the fact that Cassie had refused to let her wear anything that would alert her if she was in any kind of danger. Cassie knew that her mother was going to leave _anything_ she was doing if she knew she was in any kind of trouble, and tonight, with the knowledge of what could be the fate of her father, that was something she was not going to allow.

They fought about it but Cassie did not budge. In the end, Juliana gave up.

But right now she knew something was wrong... and not being able to place it was killing her. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and kept fighting, until she felt something else.

The ring was practically screaming at her.

_Danger. Danger. Death. Unbearable pain. Death._

She quickly finished off the Death Eater she was fighting and disappeared, letting herself be lead to wherever she had to go. She felt disoriented for a moment before she realized she was in the Shrieking Shack, and it took her another moment to realize the thing on the floor was not a thing at all, it was her husband. Just as she came to this realization and her legs ran to their own accord to aid him, she saw Harry Potter appear from a hole and walk to where he was as well.

"Severus - " She began to say but stopped when she saw something shiny begin to come out from his mouth, ears and eyes. Her eyes widened and she tried to speak but no words came out. Severus grabbed the boy, who was now looking at her with pure confusion on his face, and tried to speak.

"Take... it..." He said in such a terrible rasping sound that she found herself being able to speak again, just to stop him from using what he had left of his strength.

"Jesus Christ, he's telling you to take the memories!" She yelled when the boy stood still and produced herself a vial from her coat and did it for him. "Go! Now!" She said placing in on his hand and saw Ron and Hermione behind him, looking at her as if they didn't know who she was.

Harry didn't know what made him do as she said but he couldn't help it, he just did.

Juliana produced another vial from her robes and opened his mouth, pouring the liquid inside.

"Juli...ana..." He began to say in the same terrible tone he had before but she shook her head violently.

"No, I know what you're going to say..." She said as she poured something else, this time on the open wound on his neck, sighing when something dark and thick began to come out. Severus face contorted in pain and she frowned. "I'm sorry, I know it hurts. Just a few more seconds."

"Juliana... I don't think I'll..."

"Shut the fuck up, Severus! You're fucking going to live, dammit!" She yelled angrily and produced a syringe from her coat. She carefully but quickly prepared it with a transparent liquid and took a deep breath. "This is going to hurt as hell and you know it. I'll have to silence you. I'm sorry and I love you." Said this she plunged the needle right where his heart was supposed to be and pressed until all the liquid was gone.

Severus's face contorted in agony and his mouth opened in a silent scream. He writhed on the floor and she just looked at him, silent tears falling from her face. She didn't know how much time passed until he finally stilled, but when he did, he passed out. Juliana took him into her arms and with one last look to the room, vanished from sight.

...

"...waking up now..."

"... beginning to move, look!..."

"...thank Merlin, I thought..."

"Please stop screaming." A tired voice said with a groan, successfully shutting up all the people talking.

"No one is screaming, dear." Molly said with a soft voice. "You're just a bit stunned, that's all."

"What happened?" Fred asked covering his eyes to try and relieve some of the pain his head was causing him.

"Uh... I'm pretty sure you died." George's voice said from his place right next to his twin. Fred uncovered his eyes and raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm pretty sure I didn't, mate." He answered sarcastically. "What happened? The last thing I remember is Percy making a joke... then it's all blurry."

"Well... there was a big explosion.." George began carefully and looked to the other members of his family trying to find someone who'd want to tell the story on his place, but found no one. "And you - "

"I was in the middle of it, right? I got hit?"

"Uh... not really. You were kind of thrown away to the side unnaturally in the last moment but you hit the floor very hard..."

"And then I went unconscious?"

"Uh... it's a bit more complicated than that. Um... Cassie was there, Fred."

"What?" He asked sitting up, his senses completely alert now. "Where is she? Was she harmed?"

"She was the one who threw you away from the explosion..." George said carefully.

"Where is she?" He insisted, his tone edgy.

"Well... you were dying when she got to you and she decided to give some of her vital energy to you, to keep you alive... but you were almost gone..." He said and his voice broke. "And she had to give you a lot to keep you here and..." He didn't get to finish his sentence because Fred was already on his feet and running away from him, inexplicably knowing where he had to go. "Fred, wait!" He heard George scream but he couldn't stop.

He just kept walking until he saw what he recognized as Juliana's back, hunched in front of someone laying on the floor.

"No." He breathed out and walked like he could to where she was. Juliana turned abruptly when she heard him and her face showed surprise.

"Fred..." She tried to say but he wasn't listening. He kneeled next to her and began crying, burying his face on her chest.

"No, no, no, no." He kept repeating as tears streamed down his face.

"Fred. Fred, listen to me." Juliana's raspy voice said but he didn't pay it any mind.

"Fred, what's happening?" A confused throaty voice said and he looked up immediately, only to find Cassie's confused look. "Why are you crying?" She asked softly, moving her hand to dry his tears.

"You're alive?" He asked, completely dumbfounded.

"I believe so, yes." She answered and tried to laugh, but it turned into a cough. "I'm a bit tired, that's all. I was sleeping rather peacefully until you woke me up."

"I thought you were dead!" He said desperately.

"Nah, I'm perfectly fine." She answered with a soft smile and he lifted her and pulled her into his arms, burying his face on her shoulder.

"I thought I lost you."

"You nearly did." Juliana's stern voice said, taking them out of their moment.

"Mom." Cassie said with a warning tone.

"What? Face the consequences of your actions like an adult, Cassandra. What you did was absolutely idiotic. You didn't die out of sheer luck. If you had kept going a second longer, you wouldn't be talking right now."

"But I didn't die." She said, holding her stare.

"But you were willing to." Juliana answered and Cassandra lowered her eyes, not replying.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked looking at Juliana. "Cassie, what does she mean?"

"Nothing." She answered coldly.

"I mean that she gave you most of her vital energy, almost to the point of no return. It all came to a moment where she decided that if saving you meant giving you her life in exchange, she was going to do it." Juliana said curtly, but deep down it wasn't because of anger at what Cassie had done, it because was sadness and fear, because she had almost lost her daughter.

"Cassie..." Fred whispered shakily, panick clear on his voice. "Why?" She looked anywhere but his eyes.

"Because I didn't want to live without you."

"And what about me! What about me not being able to live without you? What about me living every day knowing that I'm alive because you're gone!" He said and tears began to fall again without his control. Juliana stood up and decided to give them space.

"I'm sorry. I didn't even stop to think about something like that. I just wanted you alive."

"Bloody hell." He said and pulled her flush to him, connecting their mouths in a searing kiss. "I love you so much." He kissed her again. "So much." She smiled.

"I love you too. Come on, let's go with the others. Help me up." Fred lifted her and steadied her until she was able to walk alone.

She spotted Amy and Rosa together on the floor. They both looked worn out but very well alive. George was with his family, her mother was with Tonks...

"Tonks?" She yelled, surprised. "What are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be with Teddy?" She said walking to her but stopped abruptly when she saw her swollen and puffy eyes. "What happened?"

"Cassie..." Tonks began to say but her voice betrayed her.

"What happened? Is Remus okay?"

"I am." He said, appearing from another group in the background. "Thanks to your friend Anaea. She sliced Dolohov's head off with a knife and gave me a chance to escape. It was quite a sight."

"What's wrong then? Mom?" She said and opened her eyes in panic. "Where's dad?"

"He's at home. He's going to be fine." Juliana answered and looked at her with pity on her eyes.

If it wasn't Remus, if it wasn't Severus, her mother was there... Tonks was there, Fred, George, Rosa, Amy and Steve were there...

_Steve._

She looked around trying to find him but did not succeed. She swallowed and refused to let the tears fall.

"Where's Steve?" She asked and felt Fred placing a comforting hand on her shoulder but she shrugged it off.

"Cassie..." Tonks said and just like that she was crying again.

_No._

"Where is Steve?" She asked again, thinking that maybe if no one said it, it wasn't true.

"Cassie... I'm so sorry..." Tonks said and Remus pulled her into his arms, holding her as she cried.

"NO! YOU'RE LYING! WHERE IS HE!" She said and felt something wet run down her cheeks but didn't pay any mind. "Tonks! Tell me where he is! This is not funny!" She said grabbing her arm and forcing her to face her.

"I'm so sorry, Cassie... I was fighting my aunt and she sent me a killing curse, and before I could do anything to stop it he was in front of me..." Cassie shook her head and closed her eyes tightly.

"No... no... no..." She repeated over and over again.

"Cassie..." Fred said and she turned around and hugged him as tightly as she could, wishing that it wasn't him the one comforting her... wishing it was Steve giving her one last hug, one last goodbye. She cried and cried while he held her, completely losing track of time.

"I want to see him." She said to Tonks once she pulled away from Fred.

"Yes, of course." She managed to say and lead her to a corridor where dozens of people lay unmoving on the floor. She didn't pay attention to any of them. Her stare was fixated on only one body. She wondered what people would think of him when they saw him there, dead. Would they even stop to look at him? He was so handsome, so beautiful. _What a loss, _she knew some would think.

What a loss, indeed.

Just as she whispered to him one last farewell he was never going to hear, she realized that from now on, she was never going to be the same person again. The world felt numb to her. Harry Potter defeated Voldemort, her father's true intentions were revealed, and she couldn't bring herself to care about anything.

A part of her was gone forever. And it was never coming back.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, that's the final chapter BUT I'm not done yet! There is still an epilogue left!<strong>

**I'm just gonna go and quote something I said on chapter one:**

"Also, this story is not intended to be super deep or long, I actually want it to be**_ short_** and pretty shallow just to calm my need to see this happening."

**I do believe I was loyal to the _shallow _part but I definitely wasn't to the short part, and thank God I never said I wanted to be consistent on chapter's length.**

**Okay, that's it.**

**Please review if you can! I really want to know what you thought of the ending.**


	30. Epilogue

**Wohoo, the end! **

**Thank you **_nenamix, sempaiwins, Valkyrie Shadow, Lehevia, EllieMasen, Kanika Kiku, Rinechii _**and**_ poisedrose _**for the follows and favorites and sorry I won't be naming anyone else who may follow or favorite this story from now on! **

**Please don't let that small fact refrain you from doing so, you know. **

**With no further ado, let's get this party started.**

**Part III is the longest becauseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee... of reasons bye. **

* * *

><p><strong>PART I<strong>

_Juliana and Severus _

It wasn't until after every trial was made, after every honor had been given, after Severus was deemed a war hero that they both began to talk about _it_.

"I want us to have a baby." She had said.

"So do I." He had replied with a small smile.

It wasn't much more than that; they were pretty happy doing with what they had to do to make it happen.

Cassie was delighted with the fact that she was going to become an older sister.

"Name her Caroline." She said suddenly one day while they were having dinner with the Weasleys.

"Her? How do you know?" Fred asked with an eyebrow raised. This earned him hard glares from Cassie and Juliana, and a mocking one from Severus.

"You should know by know that they tend to know everything." He said to Fred with a knowing smirk before sipping his drink.

"That means when we have a baby you'll know - " He began to say absent-mindedly but Cassie choked on her food, making him open his eyes wide when he realized what he was saying. He opened his mouth but no words came out. Juliana stifled a laugh and clapped Cassie on the back.

"Drink some water." She said handing her a glass.

Fred's face and ears were redder than his hair, and the large group of people on the table had faces that went from surprised to very amused.

"I didn't... I..." He stammered, looking at Severus, Juliana and finally Cassie, who smiled softly at him and grabbed his hand in support.

"Who wants desert?" Molly supplied, saving the day and her son in the process.

...

Six months later, on August 12th of 1999, Caroline Eileen Souza-Snape was born.

* * *

><p><strong>PART II<strong>

_Cassie and Fred_

Steve's loss took a hard toll on everyone, but especially on Cassie. It ultimately ended up changing her Patronus from her original eagle to a lion very similar, if not identical, to Steve's.

The worst part for was dealing with his family. But they didn't blame her like she was sure they would. She met them for his funeral, and his mother, with red eyes, handed her a folded piece of paper.

A letter.

_Dear Mom & Dad_

_I know you did not want me to do this because you know the risk I'm putting myself by going to fight. But I need you to understand that I must; this has felt like a necessity to me for a long time now._

_The principal reason behind this letter is to tell you goodbye, in case I have to. I hope with all my heart to see you again, but if I don't, I don't want to leave things unsaid._

_I could have not asked for better parents. When the world turned their back to me, you didn't flinch. You were there for me whenever I needed you, and I'm not sure if I ever said how thankful I am for it._

_I sincerely hope this is more of a 'see you soon' than a definitive 'farewell', but if that's not the case, I want you to know that you gave me everything I could have wanted, and what I want you to do is to move on. Move on because if I'm not there anymore, that's what I would have wanted. Go on with your lives, and be happy. Laugh, enjoy, love._

_And please, one last thing I ask of you is to tell Cassie that I will love her forever. She is my best friend, something I didn't think I could ever have until I met her._

_She showed me so many beautiful things, and she taught me so much. _

_Cassie, if you ever need to read this: it's going to be okay. Don't be sad, remember how much I don't like it when you are. I love you, and all I want is for you to be happy, always. Also, I think your first son with Fred should be named after me. Just saying, you know._

_Take good care of each other_

_Much love_

_Steve_

_..._

Cassie got pregnant on the summer of 2005, and gave birth to _two precious bundles of joy _on May 1st, 2006. Twin boys. Steve and Elliot Souza-Weasley. With red hair and freckles, they were the exact image of their father and his twin when they were their age. But they had _her_ eyes, and more of her personality traits than his father was hoping for. There was no undying love for pranking, and they were certainly not very interested on the shop their father ran with their uncle George.

What Fred and George were waiting for eventually came, however. On June 13th of 2014, Cassie gave birth to twins, again. Only this time, for about eight months, she refused to tell Fred - and anyone else who didn't share her special trait that let her _know _things - what she was having. That meant only some of her relatives and Rosa knew, and they refused to tell anyone as well. That's why when she gave birth to _two_ beautiful _twin_ girls, everyone was completely shocked.

"This is where it ends. I won't risk to have twins one more time." She had whispered, exhausted, to Fred, who only laughed and kissed her hard.

From the moment Ana and Nina came to this world, they had everyone wrapped on their extra-little fingers. Hair black as darkness, identical to their mother's, pale skin and her nose, and two beautiful pairs of brown eyes that had a certain _spark _on them that only shone with the same brightness on two other pair of twin eyes: a spark that meant _trouble._

_And trouble they caused._

Cassie clung to Molly like a life line, constantly asking her for advice on how to deal with two little twin devils. Molly often looked at her with a small knowing smile, because she usually ended up solving her problems on her own.

While Steve and Elliot's true loves were marine biology and potion making respectively, their younger sisters true love was mischief. Steve and Elliot were reserved and calm, preferring to read the book before watching the movie, whereas Amy and Nina shared a passion for experimenting and designing things that Fred and uncle George could sell on the shop.

This was a shock to everyone who met them. Their first assumption was that the boys were Fred and George and the girls were Cassie 1 and Cassie 2. They loved to prove them wrong.

Nina and Ana started working for their father as soon as they finished their schooling. It wasn't long before they had their own line of exclusive and original products that they decided to name _ANINA. _Because why not, right? At that point, the shop's sales were off the charts and Nina and Ana Souza-Weasley truly became known by everyone.

* * *

><p><strong>PART III<strong>

_George_

During the summer holidays of 2000, Weasley Wizard Wheezes, like every year, was closed for two weeks because of vacation. That year Cassie and Fred decided to have a sort-of-honeymoon, even though they didn't got married, and travel to Hawaii. This meant George was alone, and Cassie offered him to stay on her apartment in New York, that way he could get to know the city and also have some time for himself, and... maybe even get to know someone new.

George gladly accepted, mostly motivated by the fantasy of randomly meeting an American girl - preferably on a café - who would be amazing; then they would get to know each other better, fall madly in love and live happily ever after for the rest of their days.

He did get to know better an American girl, and they fell madly in love, but she wasn't random, she wasn't new, and it wasn't on a café.

It was on a rainy Saturday night while George was almost falling asleep on the couch with the television on, wearing only a pair of sweatpants and an old Quidditch shirt that she appeared.

Even on his almost unconscious state, he was able to recognize the sound of keys turning on the keyhole of the door. He blinked a few times, confused. Fred and Cassie were going to be back in nine days, and if they were coming back sooner, they would tell him. He grabbed his wand even though his mind, now completely awake, was saying that if someone was going to rob him or try to kill him, they were not going to open the door with a key.

So, who was it? Who had a key to Cassie's apartment?

While he pondered this, he had begun to walk, wand in hand, to the hallway that led to the door. He pointed the wand to it and waited.

"Who are you!?" He demanded to know before the door was completely opened, causing the person behind it to shriek loudly and slam it accidentally to the wall.

"What the fuck!" Amy gasped covering her chest with her hand and trying to calm her breathing. "Fred? I didn't know you were here today, sorry, I should've called - " She said, blushing.

"I'm not Fred." He responded automatically and the words left a weird taste on his mouth. He had never said it so fast and without even thinking about it, and it felt really weird.

"George?" She said with a frown. "I didn't know you were staying here."

"Yeah, Fred and Cassie are on Hawaii and - " He began but she slapped her forehead and groaned.

"Oh my God, I'm such an idiot! I totally forgot about it! I'm completely lost with the dates and I didn't realize they left this week." She moved the keys on her hand and sighed. "Sorry I disturbed you, I gather you were sleeping?" She said with a small smile looking at his appearance and tousled hair. He blushed and scratched the back of his neck, looking down. "Okay, yes. I'll go. Bye." He looked up and finally noticed her appearance.

She was wearing a raincoat but her hair was completely damp, and so where her legs and shoes. She noticed his stare and closed her eyes, looking embarrassed.

"Ughh..." She groaned, almost laughing. "I forgot my wand, that's why I'm soaked, and I was close, that's why I came here. Don't question my stupidity. Okay, now I'll leave. Bye George." She said and turned around awkwardly after waving, closing the door behind her and leaving him there quiet, like he had been for the past minute.

His brain was working a bit slower, but it was fast enough to know that it wasn't okay to let her leave to the pouring rain again, especially since she had a key to the apartment, clearly meaning that Cassie let her come whenever she felt like it.

He ran to the door and opened it, looking out and spotting Amy waiting patiently for the elevator.

"Wait!" He yelled, catching her attention just as the elevator doors opened and an old lady came out. She turned her head to where the sound had come from and looked at him questioningly.

He walked to where she was and stood awkwardly in front of her.

"Hi." He said and she laughed out loud.

"Hi, George." She answered with a smile.

"Do you even have anywhere else to go? I mean, it's still raining." He said and to emphasize his point, tilted his head to the window at the end of the corridor, where the raindrops where clashing heavily against the glass.

"I was actually thinking of going to the McDonald's two blocks down and wait until the rain stopped..." She answered and blushed.

"Are you hungry? I ordered pizza... And I was already falling asleep on the couch, you can take the bed on Cassie's guest room." He said and bit his lip, feeling uncommonly uncomfortable and self-conscious.

She smiled widely at his shyness and nodded.

"I am hungry, actually. And don't worry about the bed, I usually sleep on Cassie's bed anyway. You can take the other bed." She smiled one more time and walked to the apartment before he did.

...

"I'm going to take a shower before I catch a cold." Amy said after she hung her coat on the coat rack. George only nodded and she walked to Cassie's room, closing the door behind her. A few minutes later, he heard the water on her bathroom shower start to run.

He was drinking a glass of water on the kitchen, and while he swallowed he turned and looked at the room. It wasn't too messy, but he suddenly felt the need to leave everything as best as he could.

_Probably whenever Amy is here alone she leaves everything perfectly clean._

He quickly tried to clean up everything and casually sat on the couch when he stopped hearing the water. He pretended like he had been watching T.V. all the time and ten minutes later, drying her hair with a towel and wearing a similar pair of sweatpants, slippers and a hoodie was Amy.

"That was fast." He commented nonchalantly. Amy just raised an eyebrow and looked at the clock.

"It was about forty minutes, I wouldn't call it _fast._" She said with a small laugh. She left the towel to wash and walked to the kitchen, eager to eat something. George frowned and looked to the clock as well. _It had been forty minutes. _Apparently, he had been busy for longer than he had believed. He stood up and walked to the kitchen as well, hands on the pockets of his pants.

"So..." George said and she turned from the microwave to look at him for a second before turning back again and turning it on.

"So?" Amy asked.

"How's it been? Your life, I mean." He asked as he sat on a stool and rested his elbows on the table, face on his hands. After the pizza was heated, Amy took the plate out and moved to sit across from him.

"Fine, I'd say. I got my degree on Business Management and my dad decided to retire so he can dedicate solely to travelling all around the world with my mom now that I'm an adult, meaning Jackson's is under my care." She said with a smile before taking a bite.

George raised his eyebrows, impressed.

"Are you working with someone else? Are you making new products?" He asked, interested.

"I have employees but I'm not working with anyone when it comes to the management of the shop and the products. And yes, I am making new products. I design them and I have people working for me that make them. I'm actually very interested on starting to sell magic products but you know my dad wasn't too fond of that..." She took another bite and left the sentence hanging. George nodded and started thinking.

"You totally zoned out." She said with a laugh as she put the plate, now washed, on the cupboard.

"What?" He said, coming out of his trance. "No, I was just thinking."

"About what? If I can ask." She said, returning to her place across from him.

"About you wanting to sell magic products on the shop..."

"Yeah? Why where you thinking about that?" She said, cocking her head to the side.

"Because Fred and I wanted to sell non-magical products on the shop and if you are up for it... I believe we could have a deal in front of ourselves." He said with a smirk she mirrored after a second.

...

It was surprising, to say the least, for Cassie and Fred to discover once they got back that Amy and George had been working together for most of the time they were gone.

There were piles of papers scattered across the tables, filled with complicated drawings, recipes, and designs to what they could only guess were products for the shop.

They were both excited to hear about their idea of Jackson's Joking Emporium making a deal with Weasley Wizard Wheezes. They were both extremely successful, and working together would probably only fuel that fire.

But seeing as George always tended to be the one who took care of that kind of things, after a while, Fred convinced him that him alone should be the one that sorted everything out with Amy.

That, and of course the fact that he and Cassie had already noticed that there was clearly something brewing between them, even if they both didn't know it yet.

And they really didn't know it, and they didn't realize how they felt about each other until over a year later, when, after opening a new shop on Hogsmeade that was the first to be 50% Weasley and 50% Jackson, the celebration after the absolute success led them to share an intense look before finally kissing each other.

"Finally!" Fred and Cassie had shouted at the same time.

...

They got married on 2008 and had Cecelia Jackson-Weasley, their only child, in 2012. She started her first year on Hogwarts 2023, getting sorted into Slytherin and becoming the best beater on their Quidditch team's history.

.

**THE END**

* * *

><p><strong>SOOOO. This is the end, for real. I KNOW my last update was A MONTH AGO, but when I realized I could finish on the date this fanfic turned 5 months old, I couldn't resist.<br>****Also, see what I did there? Nina and Ana were born TODAY! YAY! ****I don't know why, that little fact makes me happy.  
><strong>**I wanted to say that I did not elaborate on Caroline because I might or I might not be thinking writing a story about her and the son of a certain metamorphmagus and a werewolf... ****If you'd like to read it, pleaseeee review and tell me so! If you don't... please review as well!**

**Okay everyone, I'd like to go all cheesy and thank you all for sticking with me through this story. I honestly hope you enjoyed it even if it's _clearly_ not a masterpiece. I know it's flawed and I hope one day I can make something better. **

**A huge ass thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed and favorited this story! You were the most important thing that kept me going.**

**This is the end of The Unexpected, and in case I don't see you, good afternoon, good evening, and good night! **

**Yep, I totally stole that from The Truman Show.**

**Bye!**


	31. THE UNEXPECTED REWRITTEN AND REUPLOADED

Sorry if you thought this was going to be me saying that I'll be publishing the spin-off I had planned because that's not why I'm here for. I'm here to tell you that if you liked this story, starting today (it's been a year exactly since I uploaded this fanfic!) I will begin posting a rewritten and revised version of it, that will hopefully be better than this one.

So, if you wanna check it out, it can be found on my profile!

And I would also like to use this opportunity to thank all this _amazing_ people who favorited, followed and reviewed this story after I followed the last chapter:

Just. make. it. a. good. one

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**THANK YOU SO MUCH, EVERYONE!**


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